Title: Mask Resort

Artist: Tatsuya Tanaka (b. 1981)
Created: 2020
Medium: cloth face mask, figurines
 

Hey, no diving in the facemask! A Curious favorite from 2018, Japanese artist Tatsuya Tanaka has always been known for creating realistic yet whimsical scenes from everyday objects. But in the summer of 2020, Tanaka's work has taken on new meaning, as he employs medical equipment, especially face masks, in his miniature scenes. In Mask Resort, a blue face mask serves as a swimming pool for miniature people. Surrounded by palm trees, people swim laps and play with their children, unburdened by social-distancing guidelines. None of the swimmers wear masks themselves—a reminder of simpler times. In Tanaka's Miniature Calendar series, thermometers have become race cars, and toilet paper (which is still in short supply in some places) has transformed into trains and houses. Face masks (which Tanaka has said that he uses after taking the photos ) have become lakes, tents, and volleyball nets, reminding us of the fun summer activities we'd usually be doing, if not for Covid-19. Oh well...maybe next year!
 

Below: a video in which Tanaka discusses his artistic process, plus two more of Tanaka's face mask photos; When is Dawn? and an untitled piece from his Miniature Calendar series.

Image credit & copyright: Tanaka Tatsuya
 

Title: This is ketchup
Artist: Tatsuya Tanaka (b. 1981)
Created: 2017
Medium: fries, miniature figurine
 

It appears fried potatoes are more dangerous than we thought. Since 2011, art director Tatsuya Tanaka has been working on his Miniature Calendar, a project where he parodies everyday life with miniature figures, on a daily basis. In This is ketchup, above, a samurai holds his stance just after vanquishing a gang of carb-heavy fries. (Our apologies for anyone who gets squeamish at the sight of ketchup!) Tanaka, who has created thousands of calendar scenes like This is Ketchup, says that the project arose from a life-long love of "likening one thing to another." For each shot, he first forms an association between a common household object and a scenario, then repaints his figurines so the entire set is color-coordinated. Tanaka certainly has the knack for comical comparisons, and his creative wellspring shows no signs of emptying in the near future. So long as tomorrow keeps coming, he will make sure our todays are full of broccoli trees, donut climbing walls, and corndog submarines.
 

Below: more of Tanaka's hilarious creations.
 

Image credit & copyright: Miniature Calendar
 

It's Flashback Friday... and National Fast Food Day. Chew on this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

Title: This is ketchup
Artist: Tatsuya Tanaka (b. 1981)
Created: 2017
Medium: fries, miniature figurine
 

It appears fried potatoes are more dangerous than we thought. Since 2011, art director Tatsuya Tanaka has been working on his Miniature Calendar, a project where he parodies everyday life with miniature figures, on a daily basis. In This is ketchup, above, a samurai holds his stance just after vanquishing a gang of carb-heavy fries. (Our apologies for anyone who gets squeamish at the sight of ketchup!) Tanaka, who has created thousands of calendar scenes like This is Ketchup, says that the project arose from a life-long love of "likening one thing to another." For each shot, he first forms an association between a common household object and a scenario, then repaints his figurines so the entire set is color-coordinated. Tanaka certainly has the knack for comical comparisons, and his creative wellspring shows no signs of emptying in the near future. So long as tomorrow keeps coming, he will make sure our todays are full of broccoli trees, donut climbing walls, and corndog submarines.
 

Below: more of Tanaka's hilarious creations.
 

Image credit & copyright: Miniature Calendar