The Montreal-based artist Raku Inoue (井上 羅来) is known for using natural materials to create visions of verdant animals (previous works on site). This time, however, he’s going prehistoric. In his ongoing Jurassic Nature series, Japanese artist Raku Inoue layers sprigs of kiwi vines, white spruce, and boxelder maple into miniature sculptural dinosaurs.
From fearsome T-rexes to long-necked Brontosauruses, Inoue finds ways of capturing a range of different dinos. Amazingly, Inoue manages to convey the essence of all these dinosaurs with his limited set of materials. The pointy ridges of a leaf, for example, become the sharp teeth, or even the jagged edges of the creature’s spine. Similarly, by lining up leaves in descending size, he can easily create a long swinging tail.
So far, Inoue has released 6 of his leafy dino designs. Inoue is adding a few more dinosaurs to the Jurassic Nature series, so keep an eye on his Instagram for updates. You can also find prints of a variety of his botanical creatures in his shop.
T-Rex
Dilophosaurus
Triceratops
Stegosaurus
Velociraptor
Brontosaurus