Riusuke Fukahori is not one to take the easy route to realizing his vision. For his latest exhibition, "Goldfish Salvation," at ICN Gallery in London, Fukahori unveiled his wonderfully meditative work for the first time in the UK.
Fukahori uses acrylic and resin to meticulously apply each layer to the little fish. It is hard to comprehend the gravity of Fukahori's task without watching the above video, but it goes something like this: Pour resin into setting, paint layer of goldfish, repeat. With each new layer, the goldfish begin to take shape, shifting from the colorfully abstract to the shockingly detailed.
"Muses"
The result looks incredibly three-dimensional, despite the fact that the work is two-dimensional images layered on top of one another. The fish are free-floating entities in a weird gelatinous space -- they are stuck in time.
However, it is interesting to note that the work feels similar to the recent fad of printing everything in 3D. One could imagine that in an alternate universe, this is how 3D models would have be made many years ago.
Fukahori credits his pet goldfish for helping him through times of artist's block and ever since, has used them as a source of inspiration. "Goldfish Salvation" is on display at ICN Gallery until January 11th, 2012. View a slideshow of "Goldfish Salvation" below.
