Joel Hustak
”A sweet-looking Japanese girl who, one day, decided to take self-portraits..of herself levitating. She can be spotted in and around Tokyo, equipped with her SLR and her self-timer. When she feels the moment strike, she presses the shutter button down and then, quite literally, “jumps” into place. What I love most about her shots is that they don’t feel forced. Natsumi has a way of making us feel as though she naturally levitates throughout life. When I asked her how others react to her jumping around Tokyo, here is a funny story that she shared. “One day, when I was jumping at a famous sightseeing spot in western Tokyo, workers at a souvenir shop were frightened by how I was jumping. They were whispering things like ‘Is the girl mentally ill’ and ‘Do we need to call the police?’ “So I stopped jumping and apologized to them by saying, ‘I am taking jumping photos for my wedding party’s slide show.’ Their faces turned bright red, and they said things like ‘Oh dear!’ and ‘Congratulations!’ and even ‘Keep jumping!’
Japanese-born artist Sayaka Ganz creates sculptures out of discarded plastics found in thrift stores, converting these unwanted materials into graceful imitations of natural beauty. For her Running series, Ganz created life-like horses in mid-gallop. “Japanese Shinto beliefs are such that all objects and organisms have spirits, and I was taught in kindergarten that objects that are discarded before their time weep at night inside the trash bin. This became a vivid image in my mind,” Ganz explained her interest in recycled materials. She collects multitudes of plastic objects, organizing them in dozens of color-sorted bins in her basement. She then decides what to make when she has enough of one color, referencing photographs of her chosen species to convey its distinct movements and characteristics. Take a look at some photos of her work below as well as a video of her process, images courtesy of Sayaka Ganz.
MORE: http://hifructose.com/2013/02/19/sayaka-ganz-graceful-sculptures-made-of-recycled-plastics/
unicorn-meat-is-too-mainstream:
Photographs capture snail sitting on a leaf underneath an impromptu umbrella
