[Caitlin]

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/culture/20070305TDY03001.htm
Water purification to go petal-shaped in Osaka river

The Yomiuri Shimbun
An Osaka-based nonprofit organization working to purify rivers in the city through cultivating Ikecho-gai pearly mussels will launch a new project this spring in a river near the Japan Mint in Kita Ward.
Osaka Mizukaido 808 plans to spend four years producing cherry blossom petal-shaped pearls, inspired by the mint's reputation as one of the nation's best cherry blossom viewing spots.
The organization is giving members of the public an opportunity to participate in the project by inviting them to fish pearly mussels out of the water when cherry trees are in full bloom, four years from now when the mussels have matured.
To cultivate the petal-shaped pearls, other shells are formed into cherry blossom shapes to serve as a nuclei around which a pearl will grow. The cells of a shellfish, which is light pink inside, are placed in the shaped shells and then inserted in Ikecho-gai mussels.
The idea for the pearls came after discussions between the organization and a freshwater pearl farmer in ShigaPrefecture.
The organization is looking for people who want to own one of the pearls, priced at 9,000 yen per mussel, and will then submerge the mussels in the river in April. They will then be pulled from the river in the spring of 2011, when cherry blossoms at the mint will be in full bloom. Members of the organization will tend to the mussels until they have matured.
(Mar. 5, 2007)

[Valeria101]

Post-modern, ritualized public performance art?


... now....why...did..those.petal pearls become so desirable all of a sudden! ?

These guys have the right way to talk about pearl cultivation (forget 'implants', 'irritants', 'nucleation', 'tissue', 'sacs' and whatever other graphic ways of explaining brutal interfering with mollusk guts involved ).

Thanks for posting!

[pattye]

Sounds downright romantic the way they talk about it!!!
Pattye

[salem]

I called my husband up at the univ. and had him look up the article. He found more information about. It seems this was done last year as well, but half the mussles died. Seems kind of steep for a 50% chance of nothing. He is bringing the article home and will translate the main points for me. My kanji isn't newspaper level. Anyway, if it seems interesting, I may buy one or two. The whole idea of the experiment intrigues me, plus it is to help clean up the river. That's a big plus right there.

PS Can't believe hanami time is almost here. heehee Have to pack a picnic, some sake, call some friends and go to my favorite spot. Hanami parties are during the cherry blossom peak and people sit under the trees to look at them. The best places are always crowded and the atmosphere is very festive. One of my favorite events in Japan. Slightly after peak is really the best. The blossoms start falling and they look like snow drifting down. So beautiful.