Transparent Things

June 12, 2011 1:19 PM

Iori Tomita: New World Transparent Specimens "If you’re a fish, Iori Tomita can see right through you. Or at least he can after he’s worked you over in his lab. A lifelong fisherman who studied ichthyology as an undergrad, the Japanese artist uses marine life he receives from fellow fishermen to create what he calls New World Transparent Specimens—sea creatures that have been transformed into DayGlo shells of their former selves. He first saw a sample of a fish that had been turned transparent at a university lecture six years ago, and since then he has used the same preservation technique to make thousands of hypercolored cadavers, which he sells at the Tokyu Hands department store."
posted by puny human (10 comments total)

The turtle is particularly interesting. I'd always wondered about the bones in those things. Seems like they must have branched off from the rest of us really early in the evolutiionary tree.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 1:25 PM on June 12, 2011 [1 favorite]

My first thought was "does this work on humans?"
posted by dubold at 1:39 PM on June 12, 2011

My first thought was "does this work on humans?"
posted by dubold at 1:39 PM on June 12 [+] [!]

Maybe. The "Transparent Specimens" link seems to have a mammal at least. Perhaps the sheer size (or volume to surface area ratio) of something like a human could be a problem.
posted by luftmensch at 2:18 PM on June 12, 2011

...sheer size...
posted by hal9k at 2:26 PM on June 12, 2011

Link to iphone app. $6 seems a bit steep though.
posted by Elmore at 3:10 PM on June 12, 2011

Err... I see the app link is in the "Transparent Specimens" link above.
posted by Elmore at 3:12 PM on June 12, 2011

Whole-body bone/cartilage staining techniques such as this work best on smaller creatures with small and/or not fully ossified bones.
posted by Uniformitarianism Now! at 4:37 PM on June 12, 2011

Five fleshed fish.
posted by five fresh fish at 5:22 PM on June 12, 2011 [1 favorite]

I hope those are five fresh fleshed fish
posted by Redhush at 7:38 PM on June 12, 2011

That machine has got to be destroyed!
posted by FatherDagon at 10:41 PM on June 12, 2011