"Encased Emergence" – Tarantula Molt Shadow Box by Chris Lee

Housed within a 12x12 shadow box, this striking display features the molted remains of a Lasiodora parahybana—the Salmon Pink Bird-Eater tarantula—captured in an eerily lifelike pose. The exuviae is positioned atop a bed of moss-covered earth, surrounded by scattered stones and fragments of nature, evoking the floor of a humid, untamed rainforest.

Every detail, from the fine hairs on the legs to the open stance of the fangs, is preserved with delicate precision, inviting viewers into a moment of transformation—an echo of growth frozen in time. The moss, real and rich in texture, creeps around the rocks and under the spider’s form, lending the piece a deep, grounded stillness.

Framed in clean, dark lines and sealed beneath glass, this work by Chris Lee becomes both artifact and altar—a reverent study of metamorphosis, wildness, and the strange beauty found in the cast-off skin of one of nature’s most formidable creatures.