Gallery of fantastic creatures
Gensou Hyouhon Hakubutsukan (”Museum of Fantastic Specimens”) is an online collection of creatures “curated” by Hajime Emoto. The three-story virtual museum consists of 9 rooms chock full of water- and land-dwelling monstrosities from all corners of the globe. Each specimen has a clickable thumbnail that links to additional photos and historical and background information (in Japanese). The basement contains a bookshop and a cafeteria serving dishes prepared with some of the beasts featured in the museum (such as umiushi sashimi, served fresh from the tank and wriggling on your plate, with a balsamic vinegar sauce).
All of the creatures showcased in the museum are sculpted from paper, modeling paste and bamboo and are completely imaginary, claims Emoto — perhaps a disappointment for hunters of the legendary tsuchinoko (center-right in the photo above) in search of an actual specimen, but an amazing collection of critters nonetheless.
Navigating the virtual museum may be a bit difficult if you cannot read Japanese, so try the links below if you get lost.
1st Floor: Room 1, Room 2, Room 3
2nd Floor: Room 4, Room 5, Room 6, Room 7
You can see some of Emoto’s specimens in Tokyo at the “Augen 2006″ exhibit at Aoki Gallery from July 10 – 22, along with works by 27 other artists. “Augen 2006″ is being held to commemorate Aoki Gallery’s 45th year in operation.
[Link: Museum of Fantastic Specimens]
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[…] A wonderful group of creatures made out of paste, paper and the king of materials - bamboo. The site is in Japanese - what little I know of what’s going on comes from this posting (thanks Pink Tentacle), discovered via PT” href=”http://www.boingboing.net/2006/07/06/monstrous_creatures_.html”>boingboing. […]
Gorgeous work. Does Emoto have a book out? The last book listed on the shop page at Aoki Gallery looks like it might be of his sculptures. Maybe someone who reads Japanese can confirm for me.
http://www2.tky.3web.ne.jp/~aokigaro/
Arjay: The book on Aoki Gallery’s “Shop” page is Emoto’s. That book, plus another, is also on sale in the Public Relations Office of his museum (located in the basement). Click on the images of the books to go to Amazon Japan. They are priced at just over 2,000 yen (around US$20).
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[…] Next time you’re a Hollywood bigshot and you need some bizarre critters, the name to pull from your rolodex should be Hajime Emoto. He has a Museum of Fantastic Specimens where the specimens in question are entirely from his own head, crafted only from paper, bamboo and modeling paste. I find this extremely impressive, since the most productive thing I ever did crafts-wise with paste was to eat it. […]
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Great find, thanks.
[…] Gallery of Fantastic Creatures - The three-story virtual museum consists of 9 rooms chock full of water- and land-dwelling monstrosities from all corners of the globe… […]
Greetings,
Hajime Emoto is a fantastic artist. I also create similar creatures but I use authentic fish and animal skins, bones and teeth. I would love to contact Mr. Emoto since we share the love of strange creatures.
Best regards, Juan Cabana ( Tampa Florida USA )
http://www.thefeejeemermaid.com/
no Amazonas apareceu uma criatura muito estranha gostaria que vocês a procurasem para informar mais sobre ele.
[…] Pink Tentacle Un weblog en el que podremos estar al da sobre las cuestiones ms curiosas de Japn, criaturas asombrosas, control mental o melones piramidales. […]
Put more pictures on and give more description
Are any for sale? I wanta a dragon…
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i am at the state of ecstasy
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