If you are a stone collector, you must have marveled at the different shapes, sizes, colors, and textures of such pebbles. However, there is a person from Japan, who takes the stone collection to the next level. Her name is Akie Nakata.
Akie describes herself as a ‘stone artist’ and her claim to fame is to make these small rocks come alive by turning them into the forms of creatures, ranging from creepy crawlies to giant mammoths.
Making the smooth surface of a stone as her canvas, Akie enthralls the followers of her art by painting intricate animal figures with minutely detailed features to bring the dead rock to life.
It is evident that Akie is an animal lover, her wide range of animal depictions include creatures that exist in water, land, and air. She doesn’t simply pick up a stone and starts to paint what her heart desires, but keenly observes the shape of the stone. She then visualizes which animal is best depicted by the contours of that stone.
Only when she is totally convinced, does she venture to paint that creature onto the stone? This makes her art deeply meaningful and not something arbitrary or whimsical. To Akie’s creative eye, the shape of every stone – from the largest to the tiniest – is a part of its story. It is to her credit that she has the ability to grasp it.
Akie’s ‘stone art’ looks easy, but the amazing amount of depth and detail it displays on close inspection places it in the category of a masterpiece. To create such masterpieces, Akie devotes a great amount of time and energy. According to her, patience and accuracy are two prerequisites for this kind of art.
For Akie, each stone is spiritual in nature. She adds, “What I paint on the stone is inspired by the stone itself. In order to bring out the living being that I feel in the stone to its surface, I proceed very carefully.”
Little wonder, Akie has risen to become a social media sensation. She enjoys over 11,000 followers on Instagram and over 20,000 on Facebook. What’s more, her ‘stone art’ is on sale on a first-come, first-served basis. However, she doesn’t put all the art stones on sale. She indicates the ones that are, by ‘available for purchase’ sign and gives its size and description.
Unfortunately, Akie doesn’t take any custom orders or take advance reservations for any work in progress or future work. This is because she only begins to paint a stone when she finds the right one.
Akie Nakata
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