Biennale of Ecological Art, “The Skin of the Earth”, Nizhny Novgorod
Maxim Ksuta, full HD video-installation
This project is a pure artistic expression, in the sense that my intervention in the process was minimal.
In this case, the artist—as the author—merely witnessed a strange and rare natural phenomenon: the bizarre dance of thousands of tiny moths within the light field of a streetlamp.
I set up the camera to capture the scene over a certain period of time with a specific interval between shots. The result of this experimental recording was around 1,200 photographs that strikingly resemble unusual calligraphic techniques, with elements of cryptography.
To reflect the dynamic nature of this phenomenon, I decided to create a video based on this footage, which I now present to your attention.
Scientists have long been trying to understand why so many nocturnal moths are irresistibly drawn to light. And to this day, there is no definitive answer. Researchers have observed that the brighter the light source, the more strongly it attracts insects.
For instance, if two lightbulbs are set up in a dark area—say, in a field, a forest clearing, or a garden at a summer cottage—one with 250 watts and the other with 1000 watts, more moths will gather around the brighter, 1000-watt bulb. Interestingly, the species composition of the moths doesn’t seem to influence this behavior.
But why do moths begin to circle rapidly around a lit lamp as they approach it? It turns out that during flight, these insects navigate by keeping a light source at a constant angle—specifically, they try to maintain the light beam perpendicular to the axis of their bodies. Since artificial lights are point sources, their rays spread out radially. As moths approach such a light, they attempt to keep themselves perpendicular to the rays, which are arranged in a circular pattern— and we, in turn, are captivated by their swift, spiraling dance around glowing lanterns.
Maxim Ksuta 