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StrangeSights: Cicada art; the ‘Darth Vader House’; and, a presidential mishap…

Cicada

DAVID ADAMS reports on the odder side of life…

Cicada

A cicada doing what comes naturally (not one of Oxana Ware’s crew). PICTURE: Bill Nino/Unsplash

 The reappearance of billions of Brood X cicadas in the eastern US after a 17 year hiatus has inspired one portrait photographer to create a series of small scale art works with the bugs as the stars. Virginia-based Oxana Ware, who reportedly collects the cicadas from her yard, has created scenes depicting cicadas taking part in Olympic events like weight-lifting, archery and pole-vaulting as well as playing in a band, riding motorcycles and even conquering Mount Everest. “I always teach my kids to just be playful and respectful of nature, so that’s how the idea was born,” Ware, who has three young children, told Reuters. “We started with my son’s fire truck and that was just a huge hit.”

• A home in the US city of Houston has been dubbed the “Darth Vader House” after its apparent resemblance to the Star Wars villain. The facade of the four bedroom property in the city’s University Place neighbourhood, which was built in 1992, has sparked interest on the net thanks to its apparent resemblance to Darth Vader’s iconic helmet. It’s listed with an asking price of $US4.3 million.

• Italian President Sergio Mattarella had to abandon a ceremony on Tuesday dedicating a Rome road to one of his predecessors, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, after officials noticed that the name on the stone plaque was misspelt. Instead of “Azeglio”, the street marker said “Azelio”, with the letter “g” missing. Mattarella had already turned up to the event, alongside members of Ciampi’s family and Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi, before the embarrassing mistake was noticed, with the lettering showing up clearly through the translucent cloth covering the plaque.The error lit up social media, with Raggi’s many critics saying the gaffe underscored wider problems for the city. A corrected sign was put up before the end of the day.

– With CRISPIAN BALMER, Reuters

 

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