Rocks Are Sliced And Diced In The Clever Sculptures Of Hirotoshi Ito

Spend some time in the mind-bending world of Hirotoshi Ito

Hirotoshi Ito has been involved in stone work since 1879. The work of Hirotoshi Ito can be divided into two groups. One is solid sculpture carved from marble or granite where Hirotoshi Ito alters the natural surface of the stone into sculptural forms that do not appear to be stone but some other material. The other group is made from beach and river stones where Hirotoshi Ito uses the natural forms of the stones and make alterations and additions that give these natural stones different characters. He also carves away sections of the naturally-textured stone to create the illusion of motion and flexibility.

Although most of us consider stone to be a cold, hard and unforgiving material, it is for Hirotoshi Ito the perfect canvas. He says that he would like to show others its big potential to express warmth and humor.

Many of these optimizations consist of juxtaposing a stone’s raw, natural surface with the painstaking modifications he makes to them to give them life. The finishing touch in many of these also involves some sort of additional little piece that completes the illusion, like string or even a sardine can top.