Human Ingenuity Medley, 4

As you can probably tell from abundance of images below, I have a hard time narrowing down and selecting what to share from the incredible array of artistic expression available online.

Please share your favorite image or artist in the comments below.

This mesmerizing water fountain at the Osaka City Station in Japan works using a digitally controlled printer that ejects water droplets in carefully controlled patterns to reproduce a digital clock, moving floral patterns and falling shapes.  Designed by the local firm Koei Industry, the water droplets are illuminated by overhead lights. Who knew there were so many ways to make art with food–besides beautifully arranging it on a plate in preparation of eating it. A team of 15 designers led by Ami Goodheart of SOTO Productions created the following outfits entirely of real food.  Each garment took hours to cook, create and assemble.

This artichoke gown was designed by Daniel Feld and Wesley Nault of Project Runway fame. It took over 6 hours to finish and the model stood the entire time while they attached each individual leaf.

You’ve got to make sure you see this as body-art.

Newspaper dress

More newspaper fashions

The iconic red telephone boxes in the UK are beginning to disappear, but thanks to the effort of local communities and British Telecom, hundreds of them have been recycled into libraries.

This telephone booth library includes a defibrilator

Canadian painter Rob Gonsalves‘ surrealistic paintings portray two seemingly different realistic scenes merging into one.

These cartoon gifs by freelance illustrator and artist Sarah Johnson managed to tickle my funnybone.  Hope you feel the same.

More whimsy from artist Terry Border and his “Bent Objects.”

French art director Alexis Persani along with French photographer Leo Caillard use photo manipulation to dress up famous statutes in Louver, in contemporary clothes. Patrick Acton used 298,000 matchsticks, and 2000 toothpicks and a whopping 14 gallons (55 litres) of wood glue to assemble this replica of the Notre Dame Cathedral

A 600,000 matchstick model of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Danish artist Peter Callesen creates three dimensional sculptures by folding a single sheet of paper and using only the removed paper to create figures or buildings.

People Too is the name of a Russian paper-craft agency run by two talented artist Lena Erlikh and Aleksey Lyapunov. Hailing from Novosibirsk, the duo has creates incredibly detailed sculptures produced out of paper depicting scenes from everyday life.

Brad Spencer is one of the very few artists in the world who creates sculptures from bricks.   He carves unfired clay brick material in his studio, then deconstructs the sculpture, brick by brick and fires it. He then reconstructs the sculpture using the fired bricks with mortar  at the site of his installation.   He likes to involve the public when he reconstructs his work, even allowing onlookers to set a brick or two.

Janet Echelman is an American artist who creates fluid moving sculptures out of nets. She was first inspired to use nets while in Mahaballipuram. , India learning netting techniques from local fishermen.  Most of her sculptures  have both machine and hand-woven netting  from weather and UV-resistant fibers.

Echelman’s studio in collaboration with Aaron Koblin, of the Data Arts Team in Google’s Creative Lab installed a huge interactive net sculpture at the TED Conference’s 30th anniversary,  March 2014.  Spectators were able to choreograph the lighting in real time using physical gestures on their mobile phones. Vivid beams of light were projected across a massive scale as the result of small movements.

For a video showing the construction of the massive installation and people using their phones to paint light onto it, go here.

From discarded wood, welded scrap metal, broken tools, cigarette packets, soda cans and piles of trash, Tim Noble and Sue Webster make assemblages and then point light to create projected shadows.  Every debris is precisely set in place, taking into consideration its distance from the wall, and its angle with the spotlight.         

These life-size horse sculptures,  the work of James Doran-Webb,  are made from roughly 400 pieces of driftwood of varying sizes built around a stainless steel skeleton. Each horse weighs over 1000 pounds (about 500 kg) and can take the weight of five people. The horses have moveable limbs and neck so they can be arranged into lifelike poses.

More driftwood sculptures by Doran-Webb:

Another  artist, Jeffro Uitto from Washington in the US, creates stunning, vibrant designs from driftwood as well as elegant furniture and doorframes.

Erik Johansson, uses photo-manipulation to subvert reality, using humor and surrealism.

The light-sculptures of Darren Pearson (aka Darius Twin) are created through long exposure photography (the same technique commonly used to write a name with a sparkler or capture car trails at night.)  With this video he takes it to a new level.

If you’re curious about how Pearson does this, here’s a brief tutorial.

Finally, if you’d like to see a dance routine that is fun and invigorating, check out husband and wife team Keone & Mariel Madrid performing at Urban Dance Camp.

For more human ingenuity go here.

Thanks to Jen H, Julie B and amusing planet.