Hyper-realistic

This weekend I came across the hyper-realistic artist Victor Rodriguez.  His paintings are so realistic they look like photographs, however there is usually something surrealistic about them so that you know that they can't be photos.   But you can judge for yourself.

Can you tell if they are paintings or photos?  What gives it away?

I will give double points if you can tell me what famous American artist started the hyper-realistic painting movement.  I will tell you that a car accident has since changed his style.

Sidorova

Stanislav Sidorova was born on the other side of the world in a Russian town that borders with China.  There is no way I will even attempt to spell the name of the town let alone try to pronounce it ever. 

Anyways, in 1977 his family moved to America.  He actually started painting at the age of 4, but is still trying to get official recognition.

I love how lose his painting style is and how bright his colors are.  I think his style fits in perfectly with what we are doing this week.  Lots of color, but very loose in brush strokes and details.

What do you think of his style?  Would you buy one of his paintings?  Does his style remind you of anybody else's style?  If so, who and why do you think so.

One big bunny

The Giant of Vlaardingen
That would be the Dutch word for Rabbit in case you were wondering.  This giant rabbit was created by the artist Florentijn Hofman.  This Dutch artist loves to take everyday items and create giant sculptures from those objects.  Usually his objects are animals or children's toys. 

Giant Rabbit made of old wood and nails

Slow Slugs made out of wire and 40,000 plastic bags

Rubber duck made out of inflatables

Max made out of pallets, straw and shrinkwrap material

Max in progress

Head of Max

As you can see most of his sculptures are made out of common materials.  If you had access to tons of raw material what would you make?  I will also give you twice the credit if you can tell me what Swedish born American artist creates large sculptures from small objects?
 

a single brick

It takes a single step to start a journey and it takes a single voice to start a movement, but can a single brick make change?

What would you think if you were walking along this brick wall and came across this one brick?

This is from a wall in Gorzow, Poland.  It is just a small piece of street art, but I am curious if it would have a big impact on you?  Do you think you would even notice?   If you wouldn't notice it, what would it take to get you to see it?

Fazzino

This sunday on the CBS sunday morning show they talked to the artist Charles Fazzino.  I was instantly fascinated by his work which reminds me of a 3D where's waldo puzzle. 

Fazzino is what they call a 3D pop artist.  He creates brightly colorful works of art that then pop off of the page with cut outs of the objects from his prints.  He has created such a powerful technique that he has often become the official artist of several big events around the world.  His latest commision was the official work of art for the super bowl.  This just proves that it is good to try different techniques and mediums to find your style, you might just make a career out of it.

It is said that you can look at one of his pictures a hundred times and find something different every time.  What are some of the details that you can see?  What amazes you about his works?

What can you do with a single line?

Ok I know what you are thinking, a single line can't create a work of art.  I am sure you would all like to do a work of art with only a single line and get a good grade for it.  But, if your work of art had a line that looked like these I would give you an A+.

That is right, the above work was created with a single line.  The color changes but the lines never cross.  This artwork is the brain child of an artist by the name of Geoff Slater.  He actually had the thought several years ago, and decided to try it to see if he could actually create a work of art in a single line. He says it takes some planning, but in the end the works are very unique and hav earned him some honors.

So do you think you could create a work of art with a single line?  Remember he started with simple projects before tackling this last one.  Would you be willing to even try?  Can you think about how you would even start this project?