Home   >   Art   >   Japanese artist carves animals out of Tangerine peels.

Japanese artist carves animals out of Tangerine peels.

By on May 2, 2020

Japan has fascinated the world with different forms of art in which nature is always central to its philosophy.

Everyone knows the metaphor of Kintsugi, the art of repairing and preserving a broken pottery with gold to ‘celebrate’ as opposed to ‘hiding’ an imperfection.

Then there’s kirigami, a kind of origami or paper-folding that includes cutting of the paper without using a glue to create a natural art object.

Using the same concept of kirigami, Japanese artist and book author Yoshihiro Okada breathes new life into fruit peels most people would throw away after eating the fruit. For Okada, the peel is just as important as the fruit. With the use of a sharp blade, he sculpts a whole tangerine peel into animal shapes with precise cuts, even preserving the stems by using them as eyes.

“The shape of just one orange peel changes depending on how it is cut and peeled. If you peel at random, random shapes appear. If you consider the design carefully, an amazing work of art is crafted,” says Okada on his website.

The idea of giving value to the tangerine peel comes from a Japanese word in the dictionary that has made meaning in today’s recycling movement – “mottainai.” Mottainai means an expression of regret at something not being put to good use.

“I hope that you will enjoy this art which includes esthetics, philosophy, geometry, Japanese culture, some educational message, and various other factors,” says the awesome artist. Check the video to see how he does it.

 

About TF Tribe