Gyotaku – The Traditional Japanese Art of Painting Fish with Actual Fish
Back when there were no cameras for fishermen to record their trophy catches, the Japanese came up with a unique printing method called Gyotaku. Gyo means fish, and Taku means impression, and the technique involved just that – using freshly caught fish to make inky impressions on paper. Hundreds of years ago, Japanese fishermen would […]
90-Year-Old Watchman Turns Russian School into a Veritable Art Gallery
After 25 years of teaching art at several schools, Valery Khramov finally retired from his job, but not from art. The 90-year-old spent the entire summer painting the walls at the school where he currently works as a watchman. He singlehandedly managed to transform the boring institution into an ethereal space, just in time for […]
This 87-Year-Old Woman Loves Painting Houses and She’s Incredibly Good at It
They say age is just a number, and Agnes Kasparkova, a grandmother from the Czech village of Louka, in South Moravia, is a perfect example. At age 87, the adorable artist still spends most of her free time doing what she likes most – hand-painting her neighbors’ houses with traditional motifs. Agnes Kasparkova retired from her […]
Artist Paints Incredibly Realistic Portraits on His Palms, Then Stamps Them on Paper
California-based Russell Powell is without a doubt one of the most talented and original artists we have ever featured on Oddity Central. The young artist is able to paint incredibly detailed portraits on the palm of his left hand, before stamping it on a paper canvas to create a permanent imprint of the artwork. Powell […]
Mexican Artist Recreates Classic Paintings on Real Butterflies
After experimenting with candy and toothpaste paintings, Mexican artist Cristiam Ramos is now working with preserved butterflies. He spends several hours pouring over each wing, painstakingly decorating them with detailed replicas of classical paintings. Butterfly wings don’t naturally make for good canvases – they’re small, and the texture isn’t altogether right for painting. They’re each […]
Artists Carve Replica of “China’s Mona Lisa” into Giant Piece of Fossilized Ebony
A group of Chinese artists recently immortalized the famous Chinese painting Along the River During the Qingming Festival by replicating it on to a giant piece of fossilized ebony. Over 800 people, 30 structures, 28 ships, a harbour, a town hall, and a market, were painstakingly carved on to the 30-tonne chunk of ebony. It took […]
Artist’s Painted Portraits Look More Like High-Definition Photographs
Italian artist Marco Grassi paints portraits of women that are so perfect, down to the fine hair lines, pores and freckles on the skin that people often mistake them for photographs. However, Grassi differentiates himself from other hyper-realist painters by giving his artworks a surreal twist. In one painting, for example, his subject’s back is […]
Chinese Artist Paints Large-Scale Mountain Landscape Using Roller Skates
Tian Haisu is the world’s first roller-skating artist – she cleverly combines her love of art and ice skating to create beautiful paintings. She specializes in traditional Chinese landscapes, but has long-since ditched the calligraphy pen for a pair of skates! Tian, who started painting at the age of three, says that painting with skates […]
Blind Artist Relies on Touch and Textures to Create Stunning Paintings
Texas-based artist John Bramblitt perceives the world and everything in it through color. Fear, for instance, he says is a “red with a lot of black mixed in. It’s almost like the color of blood and dirt or soil – it’s really deep.” His paintings are stunningly vivid, bursting with color and texture. Ironically, Bramblitt […]
Artist Turns Human Bodies into Mind-Boggling Optical Illusions
Oregon-based artist Natalie Fletcher is an expert at turning human bodies into optical illusions. Her artworks may seem cleverly photoshopped, but the illusions are in fact painted directly on to the skin! Her project, aptly named ‘Just an Illusion’, features human canvases that are painted in bright base colors like cyan, fuchsia, yellow and green. […]
German Artist Creates Photorealistic Oil Paintings
Hyperrealistic paintings are always awe-inspiring, and the works of German artist Mike Dargas are no exception. His precise paintings are so rooted in reality that it’s easy to mistake them for real-life photographs. In his artworks, the 31-year-old artist from Cologne depicts human models in a plethora of emotions – lost in thought or internal […]
Artist Mother Turns Her Toddler’s Doodles into Beautiful Paintings
Who knew that a child’s meaningless doodles could have so much potential? Toronto-based artist Ruth Oosterman takes creativity to a whole new level by converting her two-year-old daughter Eve’s scribbles into beautiful paintings. Ruth is so artistic that she is able to transform Eve’s random lines into recognizable shapes. A random curve becomes an elephant’s […]
Minty Fresh Art – Quirky Artist Paints with Toothpaste
The paintings of Mexican artist Cristiam Ramos are, quite literally, like a breath of minty fresh air! The 34-year-old creates celebrity portraits using nothing but tubes of ordinary toothpaste. Some of his notable works include paintings of Robin Williams, Miley Cyrus, Emma Watson, Lady Gaga and Sir Elton John. They’ve all been crafted using various […]
The Delicate Feather Paintings of Jamie Homeister
Jamie Homeister, a folk artist from New Albany, Indiana, paints exquisite portraits of animals and birds on the most unusual canvas – feathers. Her magnificent featherwork is influenced by her Canadian heritage, but she also depicts themes from Native American culture. Jamie receives the feather that she works on from the people who commission her […]
Washington Artist Paints with Credit Cards
Artist Sandy Byers owns a vast collection of credit cards, but surprisingly, she doesn’t use any of them to shop. Instead, she uses them as a replacement for paintbrushes, especially when she doesn’t have any handy. Sandy has always been rather unconventional – she actually quit her cushy job at Microsoft 12 years ago to […]