Ayu Mini Model

Interview with Supervisor Kazuyuki Mori

The individuality of the many fish that give us the pleasure of observing, catching, and even eating them continues to fascinate us. The Aqua Fish Series, featuring aquatic animals such as these as its motifs, is a new addition to Favorite.
Moa supervised the sculpting and painting of this series. What do fish mean to you personally?

What concept did you use as the basis for sculpting the master models?

I find the appearance of animals living in nature extremely fascinating. Regardless of the series, expressing the beauty of wild animals through sculpture is the most important concept for me.
For this series in particular, my goal was to capture animals swimming beautifully, powerfully, and gracefully—in other words, to express them in motion. I believe I was able to capture beautiful moments of these animals in action, as if they had been cut from a photograph.

The diverse individuality of the animals can also be seen in the paintwork. What kinds of individual animals did you have in mind?

As mentioned above, the figures represent fish living in the wild.
For details, please refer to the description of each species. I used as references the stages of each fish’s life that I consider particularly distinctive and beautiful. As a result, most of the models are based on mature forms or mature individuals found in nature. From the perspective of a viewer, I imagined specimens that would make me happy to encounter. Perhaps this is somewhat subjective, but they represent an ideal of how I would like them to be.

What are the highlights of the Ayu Mini Model, and what would you like people to notice?

Most ayu sold in supermarkets are farm-raised. I bought one, studied it carefully for reference, and then grilled and ate it (laughs). I also enjoyed researching the differences between farmed and wild individuals while developing the model. Look closely at the head shape, body proportions, and underside of the jaw. I hope you will compare wild and farmed ayu and then take another look at the figure.
Ayu are strongly territorial. I sculpted the fish as if it were swimming quickly and flexing its body just before bumping into an intruder.

As a palm-sized figure series, these models can be easily displayed anywhere and enjoyed in a variety of settings. Do you have any recommended display methods or presentation ideas?

I currently have the entire series lined up in front of me, and it looks spectacular. Since the models are compact and we paid particular attention to the design of their bases, they look especially good when many different species are displayed together.
It could also be fun to place natural objects such as driftwood or coral beside them, or display them near houseplants.
There are souvenirs from overseas featuring glass bowls placed on driftwood, which have become easier to find in Japan as well. I like placing fish figures beside them. It creates a very nice atmosphere.

Are there any fish species you would like to create for the Aqua Fish Series in the future?

There are far too many! (laughs)
Although it is called the Aqua Fish Series, it is broad enough to potentially include animals other than fish. While expanding the fish lineup, I would also like to create other animals. There may even be room for deep-sea creatures... It is exciting to think about!
If I had to choose one, perhaps a lionfish or one of its relatives. I have liked them for a long time and have even kept them before.
If I were to choose something other than fish, how about a crocodile? This series mainly depicts animals swimming, so a sculpted figure of a swimming crocodile would be quite unusual. I think there would be many people who would want one.

Supervisor Profile

Kazuyuki Mori(Kazuyuki Mori)

Natural history model artist.
His work is based on the concept of a “private tropical world.”sculpting、working across both three-dimensional and two-dimensional media,、and has held numerous solo and group exhibitions.。
He was responsible for the sculpting and Supervision of the Aqua Fish Mini Models.