By By EMILY DREITZLER / Niles Daily Star
NILES - Can you imagine a praying mantis twice as tall as an average adult elephant and weighing more than half a ton?
That outlandish concept has turned into a fun-filled reality at Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve, in Niles, with the inventive creativity of one man, David Rogers.
Sculptor David Rogers has meshed his creativity and love for nature to create several larger-than-life sculptures of common insects to be incorporated along the winding trails and paths at Fernwood from July 16 to Oct. 16.
David Rogers, a resident of Long Island, NY, first discovered his love of sculpting as a young child.
"I can trace it (my interest in sculpting) back to being a kid and building things. I had a natural aptitude and found a lot of refuge in it," said Rogers.
At the age of 13, Rogers built abstract steel-welded sculptures composed of salvaged car parts scrap materials.
By the age of 15, Rogers had steel-welded two insect sculptures of a dragonfly and housefly. At this age, Rogers also became intrigued with common forest materials and constructed various sculptures through different techniques using dry branches.
"After I finished school I pursued jobs that all had something to do with building," stated Rogers.
Rogers briefly let his sculpting hobby take a back seat to a number of jobs including working as a restorer of wooden sailboats, a magician's assistant, driving a cab, and delving into his acting skills in Shakespearean works.
"In 1985 I worked for a business that dealt with rustic furnishing and I liked that freedom of expression," Rogers said.
In 1990, Rogers re-discovered his passion for sculpting using natural resources and comprised a 30-foot-high dinosaur sculpture, made from branches and sapling, in the mere span of 12 days.
"Before I had always built things that were used for something but with the dinosaur, it was like going back to being a kid and building things for fun," Rogers said.
In 1991, Rogers reverted back to his original idea of sculptures conceived nearly 17 years earlier and conceptualized the plans for what is now known as the Big Bugs exhibit.
The Big Bugs exhibit came into creation through the various combinations of whole trees found standing or fallen dead, cut green saplings selectively harvested from the willow family, dry branches, and other forest materials.
"All natural materials, along with other small amounts of necessary products like steel and wood laminate, were used for the big bugs," Rogers said.
"Each ant usually has to be re-done every 3 to 4 years because of the willow deteriorating," Rogers continued
Rogers finds his knack for remembering to be key in his creations. "I've always been good at retaining mental images of things. I usually build with the dimensions of the bug in mind."
Rogers also found he is able to construct the bugs more rapidly as the years progress. "All the first objects took more time to build and it took a few years of constructing for the first ants. Now I can build the bugs much more quickly."
Since 1994, the Big Bugs exhibit has displayed 40 different sculptures with 14 different subjects.
The Big Bugs exhibit at Fernwood features 10 bug sculptures including a ladybug, three ants, a dragonfly, and a grasshopper.
Rogers' Big Bug exhibit has been featured in botanical gardens across the country from New York to California. The exhibit's debut at Fernwood marks the first time that the big bugs have been featured in Michigan or Indiana.
Along with the sculptures, a series of interpretive signs called "Insect Inklings" will offer interesting facts for visitors of the exhibit.
Also, a collection of insect specimens will be displayed in the Clark Gallery and weekend speakers will visit Fernwood to give a new perspective on insects, including Steven "The Bug Man" Kutcher, a Hollywood insect trainer.
Fernwood is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m.
Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for youth (ages 13-19), $2 for children (ages 6-12), and children under 6, as well as members of Fernwood, are free.
A reception for Rogers will be held tonight from 7 to 9 p.m. at Fernwood. The entry fee is $25 per person.
Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve is located 13988 Rangeline Rd., in Niles. You may contact Fernwood at 695-6491.