Hitofude Ryuu – The Japanese Art of Painting Dragons with a Single Brush Stroke

The talented Sumie painters of Kousyuuya Studio in Nikko, Japan can paint the body of a dragon with a single stroke of the brush. The delicate technique is known as ‘hitofude ryuu’, which literally means ‘dragon with one stroke’, and it’s been around for four generations. Watching these painters create a perfect dragon – with […]
Artist Uses Melting Ice-Cream to Create Deliciously Colorful Paintings

While most people prefer their ice-cream frozen, Baghdad-based artist Othman Toma likes it melted. He uses multi-colored melting treats as a medium for his art, instead of normal paint. And it works incredibly well. In fact, to the untrained eye, his artworks seem painted with regular watercolors. Toma paints all sorts of stuff using ice […]
The Photo-Like Paintings of Hyung Jin Park

Korean artist Hyung Jin Park uses photographs as inspiration to create equally realistic paintings of young Asian women. He generally paints bust-length portraits of a monumental scale, up to seven feet high, depicting women at close range. The hair, lips, eyes and skin are painted with a high level of precision, making them unbelievably real. […]
Meet Paintboxer – The Dutch Artist Who Paints with His Fists

It’s hard to imagine boxing and painting combined to create something artistic. But Dutch boxer Bart van Polanen Petel demonstrates that it’s really quite possible to mix a brutal sport and a delicate art form. He puts on his boxing gloves, dips them in paint, and throws punch after punch at a blank canvas wrapped […]
These Photos of Beautiful Women Are Actually Amazingly-Realistic Oil Paintings

Each time we feature hyper-realistic paintings on OC, I think, “This is the best I’ve ever seen.” But then we get to see another artist’s work, and I’m amazed all over again. This time it’s the work of New York-based Israeli painter Yigal Ozeri. I’m still having a hard time believing that these paintings aren’t […]
Can You Believe This Isn’t Trash But Expertly Painted Pieces of Wood?

I wouldn’t blame you if you thought these were just simple photos of discarded trash. I was fooled as well, until I actually read the story behind them. In reality, these are pieces of wood expertly painted by super-talented Kentucky artist Tom Pfannerstill. From crushed Starbucks coffee cups to crumpled Goldfish cracker packages, he is […]
Talented Artist Paints Detailed Landscapes on Incredibly Small Pieces of Food

Talented Turkish artist Hasan Kale specializes in creating micro paintings on incredibly small objects, like butterfly wings and snail’s shells. In his latest project, he’s taken his micro painting skills to a whole new level – by using food as a canvas. The list of edible objects that Kale has painted on includes peanut husks, […]
Woman Born without Arms and Legs Overcomes Odds, Become Successful Painter

Zuly Sanguino is a talented young artist and motivational speaker. The 24-year-old Colombian creates beautiful, colorful paintings of flowers and landscapes that have been exhibited in various shows. She has also given several motivational lectures at corporate organizations, schools and prisons. Zuly is an exceptional woman, mainly because she’s managed to achieve so much even […]
Hong Yi Strikes Again with Football Painted Portraits of Popular World Cup Players

Shanghai-based artist Hong Yi, a.k.a. ‘Red’, has combined her love for football and art in a very unique way – she recently painted a massive portrait of three superstars of the 2014 FIFA World Cup – Ronaldo, Neymar and Messi – by dribbling a paint-covered football on a canvas. Red didn’t use a single paintbrush […]
The Incredibly Realistic Painted Frescoes of Patrick Commecy

Not all forms of wall graffiti are acceptable – most are viewed as vandalism. But in the case of French street artist Patrick Commecy, homeowners actually invite him to paint on their walls. Along with his team of muralists, he transforms boring, dull patches of wall into vibrant scenes, full of life. In fact unless […]
Surreal Animal Portraits Expertly Painted on Wild Turkey Feathers

If you thought painting bird feathers was difficult, wait till you check out this super-talented artist who paints on bird feathers. That’s right, Connecticut-based Brenda Lyons paints the most stunning animal portraits using moulted turkey feathers as a canvas, as a part of her ongoing series called ‘Painted Feathers’. I seriously appreciate the kind of […]
Can You believe These Are Hyper-Realistic Acrylic Paintings and Not Actual Photographs?

We’ve seen lots of artists creating portraits that look like photographs, but very few have come as close to the real thing as Sheryl Luxenberg. Her work is fittingly called ‘hyperrealism’ – her paintings are just too real to be true. You probably need to stare at them for hours to spot one feature that […]
Artist Uses Ashes of the Deceased to Paint Portraits of Them

Adam Brown, a Missouri-based painter, is offering his clients a unique way to connect with their deceased loved ones. He mixes the ashes with paint pigments and uses them to create portraits of the dead, as a ‘lasting memory’. The 32-year-old artist said: “It hit me that having ashes in an urn on a fireplace […]
Artist Uses Her Fingers to Create Mind-Blowingly Realistic Paintings of Icebergs

Zaria Forman’s paintings of icebergs are so realistic that just looking at them actually gives me the chills. Her 2012 collection, Chasing the Light, is a tribute to her mother who died from brain cancer. She also hopes to raise awareness to climate change through her work. Forman has a unique style of creating art. […]
This Portrait of Morgan Freeman Is Actually a Finger Painting Done on an iPad

26-year-old iPad artist Kyle Lambert has created an ultra-realistic finger painting of Hollywood star Morgan Freeman. If you put Lambert’s painting and Freeman’s photograph side-by-side, it’s almost impossible to tell them apart. The features are practically lifelike, down to the last freckle. The British artist from Cheshire took one month and used 285,000 finger strokes on […]