Jizai Kimawari is a small articulated metal sculpture inspired by the kimawari beetle. Haruo Mitsuta is known for highly precise jizai okimono works that recreate the forms and movable structures of insects and other living creatures in metal. Within its compact scale, this work condenses the close observation and refined craftsmanship central to Mitsuta's practice.
According to an additional confirmation from the artist, this work is thought to have been exhibited either at Nihombashi Mitsukoshi or Roentgenwerke. If it was shown in the Nihombashi Mitsukoshi solo exhibition, documentation may already have shifted to a digital catalogue format, and a printed catalogue may not have been issued. Mitsuta also notes that, among his jizai okimono works to date, this is currently the smallest example.
Haruo Mitsuta is a Japanese metal artist who carries the tradition of Edo-period jizai okimono into a contemporary context. Using metals such as copper and brass, he creates finely articulated sculptures of insects, crustaceans, and reptiles, with joints that actually move. Trained in crafts at Tokyo University of the Arts and featured on BS Fuji's "Break Zenya," Mitsuta is recognized for combining traditional metalworking skill with a contemporary eye for living forms.