cute creatures get embroidered and felted into precarious situations with carnivorous fungi

a little ant is ensnared, about to be lunch for a most-deceptive mushroom. toxins spill into the air around a kind centipede and the slug friend across from him is too slow to flee — in hine mizushima’s latest series of soft, sculptural stories (all embroidered, stitched, and felted by hand) her cute creatures are caught in moments of realization: they are about to be devoured by even cuter shrooms.

venomous fungus
all images courtesy of hine mizushima

hine mizushima’s latest series of stitches, felt and cute embroidery is titled ‘carnivorous fungi.’ the five scenes are on display at ranbu, a shop friendly to bug-lovers, in osaka japan. her colors are magical. her subject matter is as gross as it is adorable and her craftsmanship is precise — most incredible of all are the tiny details scattered about, like the tiny white gleam, reflecting off the concerned red eye of the doomed slug in ‘medusa fungus B,’ or the veiny stitching atop the mushroom caps of ‘parasitic fungus.’

 
venomous fungus [centipede only]

clam fungus

clam fungus

clam fungus

medusa fungus A

medusa fungus A

medusa fungus A

medusa fungus B

medusa fungus B

medusa fungus B

medusa fungus B

parasitic fungus

parasitic fungus

parasitic fungus

parasitic fungus

parasitic fungus