Craft Design

#toys #wood #Yen Jui-Lin

It’s a Zoo in Here! A Diverse Cast of Whimsical Animals by Yen Jui-Lin Emerge From Wood

September 8, 2023

Kate Mothes

A group of whimsical wooden creatures

All images © Yen Jui-Lin, shared with permission

Yen Jui-Lui instills a growing group of characters with playful wiles and whimsy in an ongoing series of wooden toys (previously). Just a few of the artist’s recent creations portray pudgy bears that double as receptacles for spare change or fruit, a downcast rabbit enduring an inner tube, and birds that sprout dried flowers from the tops of their heads. Using a variety of wood types local to his home in Taiwan, he repurposes segments of cypress, cinnamon, and beech, among others.

Yen is currently working on a series inspired by the zoo, which has been in progress for more than two years. “This series is not imitating real animals; it’s more reshaping the imagination of the animals in cute and interesting shapes,” he says. You can find more of the artist’s work on Instagram.

 

#toys #wood #Yen Jui-Lin

 

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