Retro Phone Booths Transformed Into Massive Goldfish Aquariums

If you were born after 1995, you might not have ever seen a phone booth in real life. They used to be outside of grocery stores, gas stations and restaurants. I remember using them back in the days when people didn’t carry cell phones everywhere. What you see in the pictures below are retro phone booth structures which are really custom made goldfish aquariums. I have never seen aquariums like these before, and they are so creative and stunning that I can’t stop staring at them.

A group of art students who call themselves Kingyobu started creating these very special goldfish aquariums and displaying them throughout Osaka, Japan beginning in late 2011. The goldfish itself is a magical symbol in Japan and very incorporated into the Japanese culture. As you can see from these pictures, the people there really seem to enjoy looking into these goldfish aquariums.

I’ve read several articles online where people can’t get over the fact that there is no real purpose to this. I ask, why do we have to know why? It’s no stranger than us taking countless pictures of cats and posting them online. And, it’s no stranger than a lot of things different cultures do. It doesn’t matter, the point is, it’s beautiful and inspiring. My only concern is I wonder what will happen to all the fish when these goldfish aquariums are disassembled. Hopefully they will be delicately transported to a new aquatic home.

You can see a ton more pictures and watch the making-of videos on Kingyobu’s Facebook page. By the way, Kingyobu is roughly translated into “goldfish club.” I wonder how they chose the quantity of fish for each aquarium and how each aquarium is maintained. I have a feeling this project takes a lot more skill and planning than it may seem. I have always had trouble keeping one goldfish alive. I can’t imagine having to manage this many.