Whether they have colorful wings, multiple legs or eyes, or even stingers on their behinds, insects serve an essential purpose – and their beauty has inspired a new permanent wall exhibit in NMSU’s Skeen Hall.
Titled “Insects in Art,” the exhibit is a kaleidoscope of more than two dozen paintings, drawings and mixed-media pieces created by New Mexico State University students over the past eight years. It came together through a collaboration between Scott Bundy and the University Art Museum.
Bundy, a professor in the Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology and Weed Science, teaches an undergraduate course designed to expose students to the world of insects and other arthropods living in various environments. The class, which is open to students from all academic backgrounds, includes a creative assignment where students draw inspiration from insects to craft a visual art piece.
“I’ve been doing it for several years, and every year, I get some cool art that people come up with,” Bundy said. “I’ve been wanting to display it for years, to have a place to say, ‘Look how amazing insects are,’ and to show the things people have done in my class.”
Courtney Uldrich, collections curator at the University Art Museum, led the team tasked with bringing the exhibit to life along a second-floor wall in the northeast corner of Skeen Hall. Uldrich’s team also included Maya Jo Yurcic, curatorial intern, and Olivia Juedeman, collections assistant.
“I was given the opportunity by Courtney to take the lead on this project from start to finish,” Yurcic said. “This included creating an inventory list for all the artworks, designing the artwork layout on the wall, creating object labels and a title design on vinyl, and installing the works with the help of my colleague, Olivia Juedeman.”
Juedeman added, “Together, we installed around 25 pieces using security hardware. While installation can be tedious, Maya Jo’s meticulous pre-planning of the layout made the process go by fast."
Some of the artwork dates to 2017 and includes sketches, paintings and 3D pieces that capture the diversity and detail of insects.
“I’ve always looked forward to new things students come up with, and some of them have really impressive artistic abilities,” Bundy said. “Students come from all over campus – some are art students, and others are not, but they just have an inspiration to create something. It’s amazing to see the differences in talent and how they interpret their inspiration from insects.”
Bundy hopes the exhibit will lead to future collaborations with the University Art Museum.
“We all have our different expertise, and mine is insects, and I love to show how photogenic and amazing they are,” he said. “I’m excited to continue doing more of those types of things.”
He added that the exhibit will grow and change over time, with the addition of new student artwork.
“I am a staunch believer that everyone is an artist, and I am so glad to see that Dr. Bundy also sees that in his students and was able to display their work in such a lively and accessible way,” Yurcic said. “Collaborations like this, between the University Art Museum and the larger NMSU campus, are so special, and we invite them to happen as often as possible.”
A version of this story appears in the fall 2025 issue of ACES Magazine. For more stories, visit https://nmsu.news/aces-magazine-2025.
The full article can be seen at https://newsroom.nmsu.edu/news/insect-inspired-student-art-takes-flight-in-nmsu-s-skeen-hall/s/24c37ee2-1ca0-41b9-a1ba-3cf7a296f71c
