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Japanese Artist Creates the Most Amazing Balloon Animals

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Proboscis monkey

Artist Masayoshi Matsumoto continues to twist and transform balloons into amazing sculptural creatures. Crafted in meticulous detail and realistically rendered, his collection of balloon animals showcases the endless artistic possibilities of the traditional craft.

Each impressively lifelike, large-scale sculpture showcases Matsumoto's unique approach to balloon art. His portfolio exhibits an interest in a wide range of animals, with mammals, reptiles, insects, and arachnids often making appearances. To add to their real life aesthetic, Matsumoto often positions the creatures in naturalistic poses: a Kingfisher perches on a branch, a cobra sits alert and coiled, and a siamang gibbon hangs from a tree.

Amazingly, the artist uses only balloons and does not employ any other artistic materials or sculptural aids when completing each piece. This surprising lack of adhesives, markers, pens, and seals makes each balloon animal even more extraordinary.

You can see more of Masayoshi Matsumoto‘s mesmerizing balloon animals on his amazing (and practically inflatable) Instagram.

Masayoshi Matsumoto creates realistic, sculptural balloon animals.

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Cobra

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Capybara

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Horsefly

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Grub

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Siamang

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Jumping spider

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Nautilus

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Spider (Argiope amoeba)

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

isopresso_balloonLeucochloridium

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Termite

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Rooster

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Crab

Sculptural Balloon Animals Masayoshi Matsumoto

Kingfisher

Masayoshi Matsumoto: Facebook | Instagram | Tumblr
h/t: [Colossal]

All images via Masayoshi Matsumoto.

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Kelly Richman-Abdou

Kelly Richman-Abdou is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met. An art historian living in Paris, Kelly was born and raised in San Francisco and holds a BA in Art History from the University of San Francisco and an MA in Art and Museum Studies from Georgetown University. When she’s not writing, you can find Kelly wandering around Paris, whether she’s leading a tour (as a guide, she has been interviewed by BBC World News America and France 24) or simply taking a stroll with her husband and two tiny daughters.
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