Vodka infused with a giant venomous tropical centipede by ‘Thailand Unique.’
 
I cannot tell a lie—I had a hard time blogging about these insect and amphibian-infused bottles of booze made by Thailand Unique as just looking at them made my lunch churn rather restlessly in my stomach. Never mind the thought of actually imbibing a bottle of vodka that had been infused with a giant venomous tropical centipede. Yikes.

These bug and arachnid-enhanced speciality alcohols are the products of Thailand Unique (based in Udon Thani, Thailand) a company that caters to the the world’s “growing numbers of “entomophagists” otherwise known as humans who enjoy consuming insects. They carry a large variety of infused vodka and whiskey that has been enhanced with everything from bugs to cobras and even toads. Some of these creatures, it is claimed, have healing and medicinal properties. The centipede whiskey is used in parts of Southeast Asia as an aphrodisiac and according to Thailand Unique could also help ease muscular and back pain. (Do not mistake this post for medical advice, okay?)

If you’re not a drinker (or just gave up drinking after reading all this, like I almost did—close call) Thailand Unique also offers various foodstuffs made from a variety of creepy-crawlers such as edible canned tarantula, earthworm jerky, pasta made from silkworms (it’s also gluten free!) and the “acquired taste” of these “seasoned to taste,” “roasted and dehydrated “dung beetles” which are harvested in northeast Thailand during the monsoon season. If you’re not an aspiring etymologist, the dung beetle feeds on “nutrient rich” Water Buffalo poop. Gaaa!

If you’re interested in obtaining any of Thailand Unique’s products—they sure live up to their name, don’t they?—it will take anywhere from two-weeks to two months depending on the shipping option you choose. Many of the infused vodkas and whiskeys are currently sold out, mostly due to the fact that many of the things made by the company take several months to prepare for market. Their “Armor Tail Scorpion” vodka (which was triple distilled and steeped for months allowing the scorpion to infuse the liquid with a “unique woody taste”) is in stock and can be yours for about $17.46 via registered airmail to the U.S.
 

Tarantula infused vodka.
 

Longhorn beetle-infused vodka.
 
More yucky things after the jump…

Confronted with a bright pink room at the Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C., American artist Jennifer Angus knew just what it needed: hundreds and hundreds of insects arranged in lovely patterns like spirals, circles, and skulls.

The art piece is called “The Midnight Garden” and the show in which it is included is called “Wonder,” which will be available to view from mid-November through next July.

A professor at the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Angus says that her research “is driven by my interest in pattern,” which is clear enough from this strange wallpaper alone. She has often used insects in her work, having collected the creepy crawlies (always in an ecologically sustainable way) from locations all over the world. Never one to take a lifeform for granted, she also carefully reuses her stock of arthropods from project to project.

“Many people who visit my exhibitions were never aware that such unusual insects exist,” Angus says. “I hope that my exhibition will get them excited and perhaps they will be motivated to get involved with one of the many of the rain forest preservation projects out there. I would also like people to think about their own environment and behavior.”

According to curator Nicholas R Bell, “The concept of ‘wonder’—that moment of awe in the face of something new and unknown that transports us out of the everyday—is deeply intertwined with how we experience art. These elements matter in the context of this museum, devoted for more than four decades to the skilled working of materials in extraordinary ways.”
 

 

 

 

 
via De Zeen
 

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
‘Day of the Dead’ decorating with awesome skull wallpaper