Upcoming Exhibit: INFF 2025
Learn from Nature Series: Fine Art Macro Photography Meets Scientific Research ● Reading Time: 5 min
I'm thrilled to announce a unique collaboration bringing together art, science, and conservation at the Innsbruck Nature Film Festival (INFF) this October. In partnership with the University of Innsbruck's Zoology Department and their groundbreaking Insect Bus Monitoring (IBM) project, I'll be showcasing the hidden beauty of Austrian insects through fine art macro photography.
Exhibition Details
📅 Dates: October 8-12, 2025
📍 Location: Metropol Kino, Innsbruck
⏰ Hours: 17:00-22:00 daily
🎟️ Entry: Free admission
Fine Art Photography Exhibition
Discover Austria's most overlooked creatures through 6 large-format fine art prints featuring intricate macro photography. Each photograph reveals the extraordinary beauty, engineering, and ecological importance of insects we walk past every day without noticing.
Exhibition Highlights:
Large-format gallery prints showcasing Austrian insect biodiversity
Interactive educational elements with QR codes revealing fascinating behaviors and conservation stories
The critically endangered Alpine Longhorn Rosalia (Rosalia alpina) - a rare glimpse of this threatened alpine jewel
Limited edition fine art prints available for collectors
Exclusive items including matted prints, calendars, and small-format photography
Interactive Experience:
Each print features a fun educational game with QR codes - test your knowledge about these amazing creatures and discover surprising facts about their behaviors, adaptations, and ecological roles.
Cinema Premiere: A Visual Meditation
Thursday, October 9 at 16:00
Experience a 5-minute visual journey into the microscopic world of Austrian insects, presented on the big screen with live music and soundscapes. This slow, meditative presentation invites you to discover life you've never seen before.
What makes it special:
Extreme macro cinematography - starting with intimate details and slowly zooming out to reveal the complete creature
Live musical accompaniment - enhancing the immersive experience
Cinema-quality presentation - your chance to see these tiny beings larger than life
Part of the IBM Project presentation - showcasing the intersection of art and scientific research
🎟️ Free tickets available for newsletter subscribers until October 6, 18:00:
Reserve Your Seat
The Insect Bus Monitoring Project
This exhibition celebrates a groundbreaking collaboration with the University of Innsbruck's Insect Bus Monitoring (IBM) project - the world's first large-scale insect diversity monitoring using bus windscreens and DNA analysis.
Why this matters:
Insect biodiversity is declining globally, yet we lack comprehensive data about which species live where. The IBM project is changing that by collecting DNA samples from ÖBB Postbus windscreens across Tyrol, Carinthia, Lower Austria, and Upper Austria. Through meticulous laboratory analysis, researchers are documenting flying insect diversity across Austria for the first time.
The decline of insects means:
Loss of crucial pollinators for our food systems
Disappearance of natural pest controllers
Reduced food sources for birds and other wildlife
Disruption of entire ecosystems
My photography aims to create emotional connections with these vital creatures - transforming scientific data into compelling visual narratives that inspire conservation action.
Why Insects Matter
Every insect photographed in this exhibition plays a crucial role in Austrian ecosystems:
🌸 Pollinators ensure our crops and wildflowers reproduce
🐛 Decomposers recycle nutrients back into the soil
🦟 Predators control pest populations naturally
🦋 Food sources sustain birds, bats, and countless other species
Yet most people see insects as pests or simply don't see them at all. This exhibition invites you to look closer - to discover the beauty, complexity, and importance of life at the smallest scale.
Meet the Artist
As a Colombian-American biomedical engineer now based in Austria, I've dedicated my photography practice to documenting the overlooked beauty of nature's smallest inhabitants. Through fine art macro photography, I bridge the gap between scientific precision and artistic storytelling, inviting viewers to discover the extraordinary in the ordinary.
My mission: To raise awareness about insect conservation by revealing the intricate beauty, fascinating behaviors, and ecological importance of creatures most people never notice.
I'll be present every evening (17:00-22:00) to answer questions about the insects, macro photography techniques, and the stories behind each image. I'd love to meet you and share these hidden worlds!
See You There!
I'm incredibly excited about this collaboration and the opportunity to share these hidden worlds with you. Whether you're an art collector, nature enthusiast, scientist, or simply curious about the tiny lives around us, I hope you'll join me at Metropol Kino this October.
Let's discover together what we've been overlooking.
Nicolas Valentin
Overlooking Lens
Nature Photography. Awareness. Fine Art.
Bring Austrian Insects Home
The insects featured in this exhibition are available as limited edition fine art prints. Each piece is numbered, signed, and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.
Explore our collections and discover the hidden beauty of Alpine biodiversity. Every purchase supports conservation awareness and documents threatened species for future generations.
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