Hirotoshi Ito creates creepy, yet enchanting stone sculptures

When I found Hirotoshi Ito's flickr stream about four years ago, my eyes widened and my jaw dropped. I've come across some amazing sculptures before, but Hirotoshi's work is one of the most memorable I've seen.

The Japanese artist, also known as Jiyuseki, takes ordinary rocks found in a river bank near his home and adds his own bit of weird and funny alterations. He usually spends up to a month carving and decorating each of his stone pieces. As he chisels, Hirotoshi retains the original shape of the rock, then he adds accessories such as zippers, dentures, coins and other materials to complete the illusion. His creations are somewhat creepy, but they also bring laughs and smiles to the people who see them.

You can learn more about Hirotoshi and his work on his website.

Comments

The Adorable Sculptures of Yen Yen Lo

These images are from a series of wall sculptures created by Yen Yen Lo . Here you can see her intricately textured ceramic pieces, looking downright adorable. Yen Yen Lo's eye for the unique and whimsical is delightful. Apparently they are not intended for kids under 16. Fifteen-year-olds cannot be trusted with fragile stuff. Get them a Funko Pop instead.

James DeRosso's ceramic monsters

I really like these whimsical ceramic creatures by James DeRosso. Yes, they have bulging eyes and toothy grins, but they're not scary at all. The Portland-based artist started making cute monsters while he was a student to jokingly create gargoyle-like guardians for the kiln. After other students kept taking his quirky little figures, he realized there was a market for them. "I'm enjoying the whole monster making niche," James says. "It's amazingly gratifying to be doing ceramics full time and especially to be a teacher introducing kids to the joy of clay." Be sure to visit his website and like his Facebook page for the latest monster news.

Eric van Straaten's 3D-Printed Statuettes

I can't remember when I first became entranced with Eric van Straaten 's 3D-printed sculptures. I think I stumbled onto his work through tumblr when I was searching for new artists to follow. Eric's attention to detail is pretty amazing, and the image of the eroticized child-woman is familiar throughout his work. Most of his hyper surreal pieces are 3D-printed in sandstone material, which are created by laying down a thin layer of gypsum powder and using a binding agent and color inks to print a pattern onto it. Once the entire model is printed, it is withdrawn from the print bed and the excess powder is removed. The model is then sealed and ready for display. "I think that the girls I create in my work are visualizations of my own feelings, fantasies and thoughts," the Dutch artist explains. "The girls actually look like someone I (used to) know and the different ‘portraits’ tell something about what I think of myself in regards to her or women ...

finding cain

Search This Blog