A Pixel Wonderland
In Japan, May 5th is Children’s Day, a national holiday set aside to respect children’s personalities and to celebrate their happiness. On and around this date it’s customary to fly koinobori: carp-shaped flags and streamers that signify growth and strength because of how the fish swim upstream.
One of the most famous koinobori festivals takes place in Tatebayashi City in Gunma prefecture. Here, over 5000 koi streamers of different sizes “swim” over the Tsuruudagawa river.
Microsoft Excel artist Tatsuo Horiuchi captures this fantastic and colorful scene as koi streamers flutter in the wind against a background of cherry blossoms.
Details
- Artist: Tatsuo Horiuchi (堀内辰男)
- Dimensions: 20" x 23" (paper) 16" x 22.5" (image size)
- Digitally printed on heavyweight Fuji matte paper
- Numbered limited edition of 50
Meet the artist: “I never used Excel at work but I saw other people making pretty graphs and thought, ‘I could probably draw with that,’” says 76-year old Tatsuo Horiuchi. About 14 years ago, shortly before retiring, Horiuchi decide he needed a new challenge in his life. So he bought a computer and began experimenting with Excel. “Graphics software is expensive but Excel comes pre-installed in most computers,” explained Horiuchi. “And it has more functions and is easier to use than Microsoft Paint.”
