HiroTus

Hananuma Masakichi

When this Japanese artist learned he was dying from tuberculosis, he decided he wanted to leave a parting gift to the woman he loved. He decided to make her a life-like statue of himself that ended up looking so real it was hard to tell the real Hananuma from the statue when they stood next to each other.

He made each body part separately using dark wood which was painted and lacquered to match his skin tone. He made a tiny individual hole for every pore in his body, then plucked out his own hair (everywhere) and inserted into the exact position in the statue. He removed his own teeth, finger and toe nails which he also placed on the statue. For a final touch he gave the statue his glasses and clothes.