Mike Libby's Steampunk Insects

Mike Libby of the Insect Lab makes steampunk insects, their carapaces peeled open to reveal horological guts: cogs, gears and coiled springs.

The insects are made with recycled materials, obviously including old wacthes, but with numerous other recycled electronic components like beepers, television remotes, etc.

Here's Libby on how he started:

One day I found a dead intact beetle. I then located an old wristwatch, thinking of how the beetle also operated and looked like a little mechanical device and so decided to combine the two. After some time dissecting the beetle and outfitting it with watch parts and gears, I had a convincing little cybernetic sculpture. I soon made many more with other found insects and have been exploring and developing the theme ever since.

You can buy many species of steampunk insects: spiders, butterflies, cicadaes, dragonflies, beetles and wasps. Each comes mounted in a shadowbox like a legitimate entomological specimen. Just like Cronos!

Insect Lab Studio [Artist's Site]