Nature Made The Day Fun (9 Photos)

An ice ghost clings to a wall. A sand dog lies beside the real thing.

One scene appears accidental; the other eight were deliberately made with natural materials. Mekong River pebbles, bougainvillea in Lima, and rice plants in Gyoda are not background details—they complete the work.

More: When Street Art Meets Nature (40 Photos)

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👻 The Frozen Haunting — Ice Formation, Location Unknown 🌍

This widely shared photograph appears to show ice that formed against a wall in a ghost-like shape. The original photographer and location have not been reliably identified, so “The Frozen Haunting” is a descriptive heading rather than a confirmed artwork title.

More: The Art of Snow, Before It Melts (10 Photos)

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🐕 Sand Dog — By Basque Artist Andoni Bastarrika, Spain 🇪🇸

The reclining dog is sculpted from sand; the standing dog is real. On his official website, Bastarrika explains that he models sand and differently colored earth by hand, then uses simple pointed tools to add the details that make the temporary animals look alive.

💡 Nerd Fact: In an interview with My Modern Met, Bastarrika dated his first sand sculpture to 2010, when he was playing on a beach with his daughters. He then practiced during autumn, winter, and early spring for two years before presenting the work publicly.

More: See More Sand Animals by Andoni Bastarrika

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🦉 Barn Owl — By Hannah Bullen-Ryner in the UK 🇬🇧

In her post for this barn owl, Bullen-Ryner described breaking natural chalk into tiny fragments for the pale facial feathers. Stones, petals, and twigs complete the portrait; her official site explains that she uses locally found materials with no permanent fixings, keeping only a photograph after the work disperses.

💡 Nerd Fact: Bullen-Ryner was previously a painter and photographer. Her artist biography says many of her pieces are assembled beneath the same oak tree near her home.

More: See 18 Nature Artworks by Hannah Bullen-Ryner

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🐊 Crocodile — Wara Art Festival 2017 in Niigata, Japan 🇯🇵

Niigata City’s official festival archive lists this open-mouthed Crocodile among the 2017 works. It was built from post-harvest rice straw at Uwasekigata Park. The city explains that Musashino Art University students create the sculptures with local farmers and craftspeople, while Modern Farmer’s 2017 report documents bundled straw shaped over wooden frames.

💡 Nerd Fact: Wara Art began in 2006 as a collaboration between Niigata City and Musashino Art University; the festival followed in 2008.

More: Inside the Wara Art Festival (12 Sculptures)

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🌺 “Florinda Camila” — By WA at Almacén Cevichería in Miraflores, Lima 🇵🇪

WA — Peruvian muralist Marko Franco Domenak — titled the work “Florinda Camila.” Painted at Almacén Cevichería, at Calle Padre Amelio Placencia 126 in Miraflores, the portrait lets a real bougainvillea become the woman’s flowering hair while a painted butterfly connects plant and wall.

💡 Nerd Fact: Bougainvillea’s bright “flowers” are actually modified leaves called bracts. The true flowers are small, tubular, and usually creamy white to yellow.

More: When Nature Becomes the Hairstylist (26 Photos)

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🪨 “LaLisa” — By Justin Bateman in Thailand 🇹🇭

Bateman’s original post identifies this 2022 portrait as “LaLisa” and says it was made with stones from the Mekong River in Thailand. The natural colors, shapes, and placement of the pebbles create every shadow and highlight in the temporary work.

💡 Nerd Fact: In an interview, Bateman said he dismantles his pebble mosaics after photographing them and returns the stones to their “original disorder,” partly to avoid leaving human interventions in natural settings. He also cited Tibetan sand mandalas as an influence.

More: Explore Justin Bateman’s Pebble Portraits (12 Photos)

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🦅 “Great Wings and the Nazca Lines” — Gyoda Rice-Paddy Art 2018, Japan 🇯🇵

Gyoda City’s official page gives the 2018 theme as “Great Wings and the Nazca Lines.” Different rice varieties formed a great condor with spread wings, the Nazca hummingbird and condor figures, and Gyoda’s ancient-lotus emblem beside Kodai Hasu no Sato; about 1,000 participants planted the design to be viewed from the 50-meter observation room.

💡 Nerd Fact: Gyoda’s rice-paddy canvas covers about 2.8 hectares and was certified by Guinness World Records in 2015 as the world’s largest rice-field artwork.

More: See How Gyoda Turns Rice Fields Into Art

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🐐 Goat — Wara Art Festival 2018 in Niigata, Japan 🇯🇵

The Japan Cultural Expo identifies this horned sculpture as Goat and dates it to 2018. It was displayed at Uwasekigata Park; curved horns rise above a body layered in rice straw, while the child beside it makes the sculpture’s monumental scale clear.

💡 Nerd Fact: Before the straw is attached to a sculpture, Nishikan farmers use a traditional process called Toba-Ami to weave loose rice straw into sheets. Niigata City notes that very few practitioners of the technique remain.

More: Inside the Wara Art Festival (12 Sculptures)

🔗 Read how Wara Art grew from a collaboration between Musashino Art University and local residents

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💋 “Le Baiser” — By OAKOAK and the Créateurs de Bonheurs in Hesdigneul-lès-Béthune, France 🇫🇷

In OAKOAK’s own documentation, yellow lichen already growing across the brick becomes the patterned clothing of two figures leaning into a kiss. Created in 2026 with residents of Le Nid du Moulin for Festival Les Petits Bonheurs, the official visitor listing places “Le Baiser” at 4 rue de l’Aviation.

💡 Nerd Fact: The festival calls participating people with disabilities its “Créateurs de Bonheurs.” According to the official 2026 programme, more than 400 participants formed collaborative groups with invited artists.

More: See More Clever Street Art by OAKOAK (10 Photos)

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Which one is your favorite?