The face of a famous person is perfectly reproduced! Let’s enjoy “The World of Banana Sculpture”!

Artworks created by a "craftsman" with lemon juice and toothpicks!

2023-06-10

This work depicts cannibalism of bananas. It took about an hour to create the work, and the composition of catching the banana with the peel as a hand came to him during the photo shoot.

Mr. Nampei, Bananaman, and a can of beer…… are all artworks made from banana bodies. They are all beautifully reproduced and have become a hot topic of conversation on the Internet. The creator is Keisuke Yamada, 36, a “banana sculptor,” whose day job is as a salaryman working for an electrical construction company. He has already created more than 50 sculptures. How did the “banana sculpture” come about?

Around February of 2011, I happened to have some bananas at home, and I thought, “I have some free time, so I might as well try carving them. At the time, I was drawing illustrations as a hobby and posting them on the Internet, but no one responded, so I uploaded the “banana sculpture” in desperation, and it got a lot of buzz (laughs). (Laughs.) The international media called it “the most disgusting banana,” but the fact that it was offensive meant that it was of high quality. I took that as a compliment.

The tools used were a toothpick, a spoon, and lemon juice. Sometimes it takes 10 minutes to make a piece, and sometimes it takes three hours for a difficult piece. He says he draws preliminary sketches until he is able to carve without looking at the picture.

Lemon juice is used to prevent the bananas from discoloring during production, and Dole bananas are ideal for banana carving because they do not discolor easily. Once, when I told a newspaper that I was using Dole bananas for an interview, Dole sent me some bananas. That continued for several times, so I asked them to sponsor me, and miraculously they said yes. That made me very happy.

In the future, he would like to hold a solo exhibition of banana sculptures. Please take a look at the world of his “sickeningly realistic” banana sculptures!

This work was created in the summer of 2009 in response to the dissolution of “Ameagari Kesshitai. When Hotohara Toru (55) saw the work, he commented, “I’m so grateful. I’m so happy.

While pouring lemon juice over the sculpture to prevent discoloration, he wondered if he could make good use of the shine, and came up with the idea of octopus feet. Production time was two and a half hours.

Created in January ’14, when Ichiro Nagai, the voice actor who played Nampei in “Sazae-san” passed away. He has created many other anime characters.

This is a work from the early days of banana sculpture. It took him five hours to make the sculpture of Yuki Himura (51) at home and of Tsutomu Shitara (50) in the lobby of a hotel on a trip.

Kenji Yamauchi (42)’s impression was difficult because just a little difference in his hair style would change his impression,” said Yamada. In fact, he is a big fan of “Kamaitachi.

This work was made during a period when Mr. Yamada was drinking beer cans. It took about an hour and a half to make. It was especially difficult to carve the letters.

The work was created with a message of opposition to war. It was difficult to carve the banana without breaking it, and it took him two hours to complete the work.

The craftsman says, “I wanted to make the string of the mask a little thinner. Created in the early days of the new coronavirus epidemic

From the June 9, 2023 issue of FRIDAY

PHOTO： Mr. Keisuke Yamada

The face of a famous person is perfectly reproduced! Let’s enjoy “The World of Banana Sculpture”!

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