I like to collect twist ties as they’re incredibly handy for fastening fans, hardware and cables in place inside PCs. Now, if I’d been more creative, I’d have taken a page out of artist Shota Katsube’s book and built myself a micro-army of twist-tie figurines, like the one above.
The figurines, crafted from discard metallic twist ties, are currently on display at an exhibition in London called “Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan”. I couldn’t find an exact number for the amount of cable guys Katsube has put together, but going by the last image in this post over on Junk Culture, I’m going to say a lot.
As for the exhibition itself, here’s how it’s described by the Wellcome Collection (the gallery where it’s being held):
The word “souzou” has no linguistic equivalent in English, although in Japanese it refers to concepts of both creation and imagination. For these artists, the primary and dominant mode of expression is through the visual rather than the verbal or written. As such, there is an emotional intensity and delightful conceptual inventiveness to their works as they communicate their thoughts on culture and memory in deeply personal ways.
Considering the craziness that is Games Workshop at the moment, maybe tabletop gamers should be digging through the bin and making their own miniature armies? It’d certainly be cheaper… and makes a nice change from painting.
[Wellcome Collection, via Neatorama and Junk Culture]
Image: Wellcome Collection