Anne Ten Donkelaar - broken butterflies

"De draadspanner". A construction of a butterfly wing with thread and pins.

I am incredibly impressed by Dutch artist Anne Ten Donkelaar's Broken butterflies series. From the simple concept of repairing broken butterflies with new wings and bodies, Donkelaar has created an utterly fascinating and beautiful series of work.

"Goudraffeltje". The broken butterfly wings are fixed with gold leaf. 

"Blauwe spinner". The body of this butterfly is made of thread.

"Zwart vlek vlinder". With two upper embroidered wing. 

 

"Landkaart". The wings are partly made from maps where the butterfly originated.

I particularly like the way that Donkelaar has turned each butterfly into a work of art not only by framing them, but also in her unique choice of repair for each particular specimen. They are all so interesting in their own way that it's difficult to choose a favorite, but I'm especially drawn to the embroidered "Zwart vlek vlinder" and "Landkaart" map wing butterflies. You can see more from this series, as well as Donkelaar's other artwork, on her website.

(Via Creature Comforts)