WorkArt & Culture

Octopuses: Felted creatures of the deep crafted by Hiné Mizushima

For her latest work, Japanese artist Hiné Mizushima – featured previously – has crafted a series of cute octopuses for your enjoyment. In the past, we've enjoyed sea slug brooches and nautical jewellery, all lovingly made out of felt.

Written By:
Four colourful felt octopuses in orange, yellow, light blue and purple, each with beaded tentacles, stand in a row against a pale blue background

Based in Canada, Hiné is a slow crafter, needle-felter, miniature collage artist and stop-motion, puppet animation video artist. Born and raised in Japan, she majored in Japanese traditional painting before working as a designer and illustrator in Tokyo. She later moved to Rome, then Paris, and then NYC. Ten years ago she left the Big Apple for Vancouver where she currently lives with her family.

Admired worldwide, she has been commissioned for a number of commercial music videos, including several for They Might Be Giants. Her illustrations are mainly paper cut-out and digital. While her felt sculptures have been exhibited in galleries in the US and Japan, published in books and magazines, and commissioned for an Adobe Creative Cloud event in NYC. She has also made miniature collages for several book covers in Japan.

If you want to get your hands on one of her creations, then check out her Etsy shop. Or find out more about her at www.hinemizushima.com.

Four colourful felt octopuses in glass domes with wooden bases, displayed in front of a turquoise fabric wall hanging featuring octopi and coral motifs
Four colourful needle-felted octopuses in glass domes on wooden bases: orange, light blue, purple and yellow
Blue felt octopus with gold eyes and colourful beaded tentacles inside a glass dome on a wooden base, displayed alongside orange and purple octopus sculptures
Light blue felt octopus with golden eyes and colourful beaded tentacles by Hiné Mizushima
Bright orange felted octopus with tentacles and suction cups against a pink background, viewed from behind
Purple needle-felted octopus with beaded tentacles and embroidered eyes against a light blue background
Bright yellow needle-felted octopus with white-rimmed eyes and tentacles decorated with coloured beads, standing on a mint green surface against a blue-grey background
Purple felt octopus with eight tentacles adorned with colourful beaded stripes, crafted by Hiné Mizushima
Orange felt octopus with eight tentacles positioned on a pink surface next to a black camera with a patterned strap
Share

Further Reading