Arboretum expects swarms of visitors for latest outdoor art exhibit

Artist David Rogers didn't collect fireflies in a jar when he was a boy. He didn't own an ant farm to watch the colony tunnel between pieces of glass. He didn't even try to trap grasshoppers.

Instead, the Long Island, N.Y., native says he became fascinated with the creepy-crawly world of bugs as an adult.

Now the environmental artist creates larger-than-life sculptures of insects to increase public awareness of how bugs benefit us and the importance of preservation.

"When you build a 12-foot sculpture of an insect, you realize what a marvel of engineering they are," Rogers said recently from Atlanta. "We really need to be more conscious and good stewards of our land."

Twelve of Rogers' larger-than-life Big Bug sculptures will invade Lisle's Morton Arboretum from April 25 to July 20. The exhibit makes its Midwest stop on a tour across the United States that's expected to attract swarms of art-minded visitors to arboretums and botanical gardens.

"I have done two complete Big Bug sets that travel independent of each other," Rogers said. "There are 40 pieces, but not all the pieces tour and some I've retired."

A 450-pound, 17-foot daddy longlegs will make its national debut at the arboretum, Rogers said. The spider-like arachnid will join an 18-foot praying mantis carved from black locust that tips the scales at 1,200 pounds.

With lacy willow wings, a dapper 17-foot dragonfly and a dainty 10-foot damselfly will float over Meadow Lake in the exhibit.

"The dragonfly and damselfly are totally different insects even though they look similar," Rogers said.

Juxtaposing the pieces is part of the educational platform Rogers tries to achieve as patrons notice contrasts and similarities.

Another sculpture is a 60-pound spider carved from black walnut posed within its 75-pound willow web.

"People see the thousands of willow saplings but the structural component is metal," Rogers said. The metal structures allow the pieces to be transportable.

Close to the restaurant dining deck at the arboretum, a 2-foot bee will hover over a 75-pound hive of entwined willow twigs. A trio of 10-foot high ants and a smaller 7-foot assassin bug will take positions near Meadow Lake.

A gargantuan grasshopper and super-sized ladybug complete the brood of bugs.

The dozen sculptures are made from lots of willow, some red cedar, black walnut and black locust and range in size from 50 to 1,200 pounds. The willow is taken from growing trees that quickly replenish themselves. All the other wood is from fallen trees.

The truckload of art came to the arboretum last fall from Columbus, Ohio, and was placed in hibernation for the winter. The artist refurbished pieces prior to storage because their exposure to the elements necessitates regular maintenance.

"The weather is my nemesis," Rogers said. "Every three years all the willow needs complete refurbishing because it is a soft wood."

It takes him one to three months to construct a sculpture.

"In the beginning, I did a lot of research but learned that less is more," Rogers said. "It allows me the freedom of expression and interpretation, which is the basis of good art."

Rogers remembers feeling he "nailed a piece" when he overheard a parent suggest that one of his sculptures was a grasshopper and the child correctly identified it as a praying mantis.

"I meet these curious kids all the time," Rogers said. "You know they really connect, because they tell you all about the bugs. They are full of their own exploration. It tickles their fancy to see these common creatures in such a large scale."

Rogers learned to weld and build abstract art using salvaged auto parts and scrap metal at the age of 13. Along his eclectic career path, the artist was a cabdriver, magician's assistant, Shakespearean actor, sailboat crewmember, cabinetmaker and carpenter in historic Victorian homes before designing and building rustic garden structures from bent-saplings.

In 1991, using his construction and engineering talents, he conceptualized a role reversal of dimension and perception when a tiny insect took on massive proportions. The result is the Big Bugs collection.

"Art was always a good outlet for me," he said. "I wasn't a good student, and I talk about that all the time in public, because there are a lot of kids like me. What we really want to do is go into a room to paint, draw and express ourselves. Not all kids are cookie cutters. Some need other ways to channel their natural creative energies and not be shut down."

Along the way, Rogers also learned when to wear and not wear his red bandana.

"The bandana was a practical thing to wear while I worked," Rogers said laughing. "I got photographed so often working, setting up or taking down the exhibit, that it became an icon. I was at a reception last spring and no one knew who I was, and I thought I might have to tie on my prop."

Rogers enjoys his art and the attention he's garnered.

"It has been one of the greatest joys that millions of people have seen my work and that it really resonates with kids in particular," Rogers said. "It is instant fun for people."

The Morton Arboretum plans a swarm of events and programs to coincide with Rogers' Big Bug exhibit.

For details, visit www.mortonarb.org or call (630) 968-0074 as programs develop.

If you go

What: Big Bugs exhibit

When: 7 a.m. until sunset from April 25 to July 20

Where: Morton Arboretum, 4300 Route 53, Lisle

Cost: $9 for adults, $8 for seniors, $6 for children; prices are lower on Wednesdays and parking is free

Info: www.mortonarb.org or (630) 968-0074

Bug facts

Some stuff about bugs, courtesy of the Morton Arboretum:

Spider: You are never more than 8 feet from a spider. A strand of spider silk is stronger than a strand of steel of the same width.

Praying mantis: Able to turn head 180 degrees to see and hear its prey. Can make a sound to frighten off predators.

Ladybug: Number of spots is fixed for each species and varies from none to 19. Bright colors warn predators not to eat them.

Grasshopper: Can jump 4 feet ahead and 2 feet up using back legs. There are roughly 550 species in North America.

Dragonfly: Among the fastest insects in the world. It will fly up to 85 miles a day.

Damselfly: There are 49 species in Illinois. Its flight is uncertain and fluttering.

Daddy longlegs: Two animals are called daddy longlegs and both have 8 long legs.

Bees: There are 20,000 known species worldwide. A major pollinator in any ecosystem with flowering plants. Honeybees are disappearing and not coming back to nests. There are only four species of honeybees in the world.

Assassin bug: Common throughout the world and in our area. It is helpful in disposing of garden pests and controlling pest populations.

Ant: There are roughly ten thousand trillion ants worldwide but none in Antarctica, Greenland, Iceland and Hawaii. Colony odor helps ants recognize companions and drive off strangers.