portraits

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Design Photography

Recycled Packing Materials Sculpted Into Elaborate Renaissance Costumes by Suzanne Jongmans

Interdisciplinary artist Suzanne Jongmans uses her skills as a sculptor and costume designer to create recycled garments from packing materials such as Styrofoam, plastic sheets, and segments of thick bubble wrap. The costumes take the form of elaborate bonnets and high collared dresses which are then photographed on subjects in poses reminiscent of portrait styles from the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries. Specifically the Dutch artist references paintings created by artists such as Rembrandt, Holbein the Younger, and Rogier van der Weyden in her styled photographs.

Jongmans draws connections between contemporary disposable materials and the aesthetics of fine silks or lace, presenting creative takes on centuries-old clothing. “The idea of making something out of nothing changes our look on reality,” she explains. “…Most people throw that [foam] away. I make clothing out of it; foam is my textile.” You can see more of her portraits and garments sculpted from recycled materials on her website and Facebook.

Art

Thick Strokes of Paint Create Featureless Portraits in Abstracted Paintings by Joseph Lee

Los Angeles-based artist and actor Joseph Lee paints thickly layered portraits that mask the details and expressions of his subjects’ faces. His abstracted profiles sometimes reveal a subtle hint of an eye, nose, or ear between multi-colored brushstrokes, and are set against matte backgrounds to make each painting pop. Although the facial expressions are often hidden, the self-taught artist intends to bring emotions to each face through the turn of the head or the line of a jaw. You can see more of his impasto portraits on his website and Instagram.

Art

Hyperrealistic Drawings by Arinze Stanley Capture Surreal Moments and Powerful Emotions

Self-taught Nigerian artist Arinze Stanley (previously) is a wizard when it comes to putting charcoal and graphite to paper. The artist creates hyperrealistic portraits at a scale just larger than life, spending hundreds of hours detailing his subjects’ skin, hair, and sweat so that the works are nearly indistinguishable from black and white photographs. The artist recently opened a solo exhibition of new drawings at Jonathan LeVine Projects in New Jersey titled Mirrors, which seeks to pull viewers in so that they can connect with and see themselves in the subjects.

From new takes on familiar works like in Negro Mona Lisa (below), to drawings with more surreal elements like Black Noise (above), the emotion that Stanley is able to depict in the faces and gestures is compelling even from a distance. Getting up close to one of his pieces adds to its weight, as the viewer’s brain tries to reconcile the amount of labor that went into each work.

In an artist statement on his website, Stanley explains that his art is “born out of the zeal for perfection both in skill, expression and devotion to create positive changes in the world.” In a press release for his current exhibition he tells Jonathan LeVine Projects that the process of drawing is “like energy transfer,” and that by transferring his energy through graphite, each blank piece of paper becomes art. Mirrors is on view through November 11 at the gallery’s space at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City, New Jersey. You can see more of his portraits on Instagram.

Photography

Spools of Colorful Tape and Piles of Painted Canvases Transform Subjects into Living Works of Art

French creative studio Akatre was recently asked by Centre Pompidou to create a series of visuals that would further engage the Paris-based institution’s audience. For the project, Akatre knew they wanted to humanize the museum’s visitor communication materials, while also speaking to the act of creation. The studio shot a series of seven portraits that covered their subjects’ heads with arts and craft materials such as spools of colorful tape, dozens of paintbrushes, and drips of neon paint. The works will be incorporated into Centre Pompidou’s visitor publications, with three of the images printed on upcoming membership cards. You can see more projects by Akatre, including these slime-covered portraits, on their Instagram and Behance.

Art Photography

Digitally Altered Portraits Superimposed with Flowers, Antique Patterns, and Wildlife Illustrations by Tawny Chatmon

Maryland-based artist Tawny Chatmon combines traditional portraiture with digital collage, layering elements of antique patterns, vintage botanicals, and wildlife illustrations onto images of her children and other relatives. Once printed, Chatmon often revisits the digital textures she has superimposed, physically adding layers of gold ornamental elements or paint.

“My camera remains my primary tool of communication, while my constant exploration of diverse ways of expression moves me to add several different layers using a variety of mediums,” explains Chatmon to Colossal, “After a portrait session is complete, I typically digitally manipulate my portraits and unite them with other photographic components to achieve a work that is a new expression—often lending to them the eyes of someone their elder and more wise, and almost always exaggerating their hair.”

Her children not only serve as her models, but also her greatest source of inspiration while making work. Chatmon further explains that the layered portraits are driven by her “desire to contribute something important to a world I want my children to thrive in.” The artist’s work will be on display as part of The Art of Blackness Exhibition in Chicago, which opens at Block 37 on October 12, 2018. You can see more of her work on her website and Instagram. (via Beautiful Bizarre Magazine)

Art Illustration

Nuanced Portraits of Women Merged With Abstract Environments by Sofia Bonati

Self-taught artist Sofia Bonati captures nuanced expressions and personalities of a variety of female characters while also integrating them into abstracted environments and patterns. Her illustrations most often feature solo subjects melded with thunderclouds, dizzying mazes, and floral patterns. Bonita renders the women’s features in graphite and she uses gesso, paint, and markers to add colorful accents and build their surroundings. The strong, distinctive expressions on each woman’s face suggests that the characters are in control of their environments, rather than being subsumed by them.

In a recent collaboration with Society6, several of the Argentinian artist’s works have been animated by glitch artist Chris McDaniel. You can see more of Bonita’s work on Facebook and Instagram, and find a variety of products featuring her designs on Society6. (via Visual Fodder)

Photography

Uncanny Resemblances Between Classic Dog Breeds and Humans Captured by Gerrard Gethings

Gerrard Gethings has captured a lot of personalities as an animal photographer, including his own canine muse Baxter. Therefore when he began shooting his latest series that paired humans and look-alike dog breeds, it would only make sense that he would first focus on finding the perfect animal models before locating matching humans. For the memory game Do You Look Like Your Dog? Gethings spent a year creating images that examine the classic trope of owners looking just like their canine friends. The new game presents 25 matches, which include a long-haired Afghan and equally silky-haired owner, a messy-haired kid and his scruffy puppy, and Schnauzer with a matching beard to his leather jacket-clad owner. You can now purchase the memory game through Laurence King, and see more of Gethings’s animal portraiture on Instagram.