Olga Larionova has already become famous not only in Russia, but also abroad, thanks to her unusually talented realistic drawings and portraits written in pencil. Often her portraits cannot be distinguished from photographs.
Olga graduated from an architectural university, but works as an interior designer. She started drawing portraits at 12-14, then tried herself in different genres, but soon realized that her passion in art was “hyperrealism”. Olga calls herself self-taught, because she never studied professional academic drawing. However, looking at her portraits, it is difficult to believe that with the help of an ordinary automatic pencil and eraser, one can achieve such photographic accuracy and realism.
Olga works out every detail of the drawing, because increased attention to detail, in her opinion, is the main secret of photorealistic work. To see flaws, she photographs or scans the portrait, then refines it: adding highlights with white ink or a gel pen, and using other artistic techniques. On average, an A4 portrait takes Olga from 3 to 5 days, and for larger works - up to several months.
Olga Larionova painted many portraits of celebrities, in her collection: Rihanna, Jared Leto, Christina Aguilera, Robert Downey Jr. and many other movie and music stars who were her muses. However, now the artist prefers to work with emotional subject photographs. Olga says that she draws for herself, and that the process of drawing itself brings her great pleasure. Many of her works, published on blogs and social networks, delight and inspire other artists to create and find their own style.
Incredible facts
Hyperrealism in pencil
By Diego Fazio
This talented 22-year-old artist never ceases to amaze and prove again that his paintings are not photographs and that they are all drawn in pencil.
He signs his works, which he publishes on the Internet, as DiegoKoi. Since there are still those who do not believe that he draws everything himself, he has to share the secrets of his creativity.
The artist can already boast of his own style - he begins all his work from the edge of the sheet, unwittingly imitating an inkjet printer.
His main tools are pencils and charcoal. It takes Fazio about 200 hours to paint a portrait.
Oil Paintings
By Eloy Morales
Incredibly realistic self-portraits are created by Spanish painter Eloy Morales.
All paintings are painted in oil. In them he depicts himself, stained with paints or shaving cream, thereby trying to capture and depict the light.
The work on the paintings is very meticulous. The author works slowly, carefully choosing colors and processing all the details.
And yet, Morales denies that he places emphasis on details. He claims that the most important thing for him is to choose the right tones.
If you make a precise transition between tones, the details appear on their own.
Paintings with colored pencils
By Jose Vergara
Jose Vergara is a young American artist from Texas. He is the author of paintings, each of which incredibly accurately conveys the human eye.
Vergara mastered the skill of drawing eyes and their details when he was only 12 years old.
All hyper-realistic paintings are drawn with ordinary colored pencils.
To make the paintings appear even more realistic, the artist adds reflections of the objects the eye is looking at to the irises. It could be the horizon or mountains.
Oil paintings
By Roberto Bernardi
The works of the contemporary 40-year-old artist, who was born in Toddi, Italy, are striking in their realism and detail.
It is worth noting that he began to draw in early childhood, and by the age of 19 he was attracted to the hyperrealism movement, and he still paints oil paintings in this style.
Acrylic paintings
By Tom Martin
This young 28-year-old artist comes from Wakefield, England. He graduated with honors from the University of Huddersfield in 2008 with a BA in Art and Design.
What he depicts in his paintings is related to the images that he sees every day. Tom himself leads a healthy lifestyle, and this influences his work.
In Martin's paintings you can find a piece of steel or laid out candies, and in all this he finds something of his own, special.
His goal is not to simply copy an image from a photograph, he paints pictures using several painting and modeling techniques that have been developed using modern technology.
Martin's goal is to make the viewer believe in the things he sees in front of him.
Oil paintings
By Pedro Campos
Pedro Campos is a Spanish artist living in Madrid, Spain. All of his paintings are incredibly similar to photographs, but in fact they are all painted with oil paints.
The career of a talented artist began in creative workshops, where, while still very young, he designed nightclubs and restaurants. After that, he worked in advertising agencies, but his love for hyperrealism and painting probably came while he was engaged in restoration.
At the age of 30, he began to think seriously about becoming an independent artist. Today he is over forty, and he is a recognized master of his craft. Campos's work can be seen at the popular London art gallery Plus One.
For his paintings, the artist chooses objects with a peculiar texture, for example, shiny balls, sparkling glassware, etc. He gives new life to all these seemingly ordinary, inconspicuous objects.
Ballpoint pen paintings
By Samuel Silva
The most interesting thing about the works of this artist is that they are drawn exclusively with ballpoint pens - 8 colors.
Most of 29-year-old Silva's paintings are copied from photographs that he liked best.
To draw one portrait, an artist needs about 30 hours of painstaking work.
It is worth noting that when drawing with ballpoint pens, the artist has no right to make a mistake, because... it will be almost impossible to fix.
Samuel doesn't mix his ink. Instead, strokes of different colors are applied in layers, which gives the painting the effect of a rich palette of colors.
The young artist is a lawyer by profession, and drawing is just his hobby. The first drawings were made in notebooks during my school years.
In addition to pens, Samuel tries to draw with chalk, pencil, oil paints and acrylics.
Watercolor paintings
By Eric Christensen
This self-taught artist began drawing back in 1992. Now Christensen is one of the most popular and fashionable artists.
Among other things, Eric is so far the only hyperrealist artist in the world who paints exclusively with watercolors.
His paintings depict an idle lifestyle, motivating the viewer to relax somewhere in a villa with a glass of wine in hand.
Oil paintings
By Luigi Benedicenti
Originally from the city of Chieri, Benedicenti decided to connect his life with realism. He was born on April 1, 1948, that is, already in the seventies he worked in this direction.
Some of his most famous paintings were those where he depicted in detail pastries, cakes and flowers, and they looked so accurate that you wanted to eat these cakes.
Luigi graduated from art school in Turin in the 70s. Many critics began to speak well of his paintings, and his own fans also appeared, but the artist was in no hurry to meet the fuss of the exhibition.
In the early 90s, he decided to put his works on public display.
The author himself says that he wants to convey in his works the sensations and excitement of the small joys that he himself experiences every day, being an exemplary family man, a good friend and a resident of a small Italian town.
Oil and watercolor paintings
By Gregory Thielker
The work of artist Gregory Tilker, who was born in New Jersey in 1979, is reminiscent of a car journey on a cool, rainy evening.
In Tilker's work, you can see parking lots, cars, highways and streets through raindrops on a front window.
It is worth noting that Tilker studied art history at Williams College and painting at the University of Washington.
After he moved to Boston, Gregory decided to focus on cityscapes, which can be seen in his works.
Pencil, chalk and charcoal drawings
By Paul Cadden
You may be surprised, but the works of the famous Scottish artist Paul Cadden were influenced by the brilliant Soviet sculptor Vera Mukhina.
The main colors in his paintings are gray and dark gray, and the tool he uses is a slate pencil, with which he conveys even the smallest drops of water frozen on a person’s face.
Sometimes Cadden picks up chalk and charcoal to make the image even more realistic.
It is worth noting that the hero draws from photographs. The artist says that his mission is to create a living story from an ordinary, flat photograph.
Colored pencil drawings
By Marcello Barenghi
The main theme of hyperrealist artist Marcello Berengi is the objects around us.
The pictures he draws are so real that it seems you can pick up a drawn bag of chips, or solve a drawn Rubik's cube.
To create one painting, Marcello spends up to 6 hours of painstaking work.
Another interesting fact is that the artist himself films the entire process of creating a drawing and then posts a 3-minute video online.
Italian artist Marcello Barenghi draws 50 euros
No less interesting and in demand today is such a hobby as drawing pictures by numbers. It differs from coloring books in the scale of work. As a rule, these are large paintings, real canvases that can be hung on the wall or given as a gift. Who will be interested in this activity? Everyone - from children to adults, housewives and businesswomen who want to somehow express themselves, reveal their talents, and so that they like it! Color by number pictures will not let you get bored and will help diversify your day. You will be happy to watch how a magnificent picture is born under your brush.
Coloring pictures by numbers is very interesting. This is the best way to be alone with your thoughts. What else is good about color by number paintings? Because you get quick results. You can decorate your home with a painted picture and proudly tell and show it to guests. Every time you look at your masterpiece, you will experience joy and delight. You don’t need to give half a kingdom for such a hobby; color by number paintings are affordable. Check out our selection of paintings that we have planned to draw.
1. Cherry blossoms.
You can look at this picture endlessly. Will decorate a bedroom or living room.
2. Lush bouquet.
Flowers and fruits look like real ones; it is best to decorate the dining area.
3. Lioness with baby.
Animal lovers will be happy to take on this work.
4. Marine theme.
You can draw it and give it to a friend who is an avid traveler.
5. Golden autumn.
While working on this picture, it seems to us that we can forget about all the problems. Works better than medicine.
6. Pensive fish.
This fish only looks simple and artless. I'll have to work on it some more.
7. Yellow sunflowers.
Taking this set in your hands, you can compete with Van Gogh himself. In any case, do no worse.
8. Somewhere by the sea.
This picture will give you the opportunity to mentally be a thousand kilometers away.
Who said that real art is paints and canvases? We are ready to tell you about the direction in artistic creativity, which was and is well mastered by such masters as Vrubel or Brian Duey. They perfectly executed drawings with a simple pencil. And these works excite, delight and bring pleasure. Is it possible to adopt their technique and learn to draw using a similar method? Of course you can! But how and what is needed for this?
- First, let's talk about why you should pay attention to this area.
- The next important issue we will focus on is the secrets of drawing.
- And let’s complete this excursion into the world where black and white images reign with a small but pleasant gift.
Monochrome pencil drawings
Speaking about the greatness and genius of everything simple, one cannot help but recall the ordinary pencil. Which of us is not familiar with it and has not held it in our hands? We have all been fluent in it since childhood. Of course, for beginners, for very tiny children, it seems so easy to pick up a pencil and start “creating” scribbles.
But the child grows, and he sees that the range of uses for a pencil is huge, and it can be used in different ways. Someone builds cities, bridges and houses for them on paper. Another one plots a route for them to travel around the world on a map. And the third one writes poetry or draws a portrait of his beloved.
So easily and simply the pencil entered our lives and became our assistant and friend. And pictures drawn in pencil are already a whole trend, stylish and having their own unique charm.
Their distinctive feature is that they are absolutely universal. And therefore their possibilities are endless. Drawn in pencil, they are:
- Suitable for any age. Both small children find it interesting to look at them, and adults like to use them in their posts on social networks.
- There are no limiting criteria for their use. Girls and boys will be interested in displaying such beautiful pictures as a status or giving them to their friend.
- You can copy them or you can easily learn how to perform them yourself (copy them).
- Different nature of images. These can be cute pictures with cute fluffies, they can be funny and funny, or they can be similar to photographs.
And most importantly, the pencil drawing looks incredibly attractive and convincing. It can decorate not only your profile on a page on social networks, but also your morning and the whole day with pleasant memories.
Options for drawing simple images
The main secret why pencil drawings are cool, original and attract attention is that they look as if they were alive. Everything is drawn so realistically and accurately that it seems that people are about to start talking, or laugh, or cry, and the objects can be taken and used.
Why are they so cool and everything looks so natural? What brings them to life? Take a closer look, through the light strokes it is noticeable that the master thought through not only the accuracy of the lines conveying the image and silhouette, he paid special attention to one tiny nuance, thanks to which the images are not only beautiful, but also almost material. What is this? Light and shadow.
Masterfully working on chiaroscuro, the artist achieves apparent volume. Before us, as they were, are simple black and white pictures for sketching. But when a shadow appeared, for example, from a curl of hair falling on the face, or on the table from a vase, everything suddenly came to life.
Can you do the same? Do you want to learn? Do you want yours to look realistic? Then you have come to us correctly!
Step-by-step master classes
It’s easy to say: “draw,” but how can you really do it if you’ve never studied it and it seems like you have no talent? The team of our site gives all their friends an amazing opportunity to learn how to make pencil drawings step by step. Without teachers, you yourself are able to become an artist and delight yourself and your loved ones with your creativity. How? If you take our tips, you can use them to master sketching and repetition techniques. It's not complicated at all. And the result will please you.
These artists amaze with their talent and the way they create their hyper-realistic paintings. It's hard to believe, but these are not photos, but real paintings drawn with pencil, paints and even ballpoint pens. We don't understand how they do it?! Just enjoy their creativity.
Omar Oritz- hyperrealist artist from Mexico, Bachelor of Graphic Design. The main subject of his paintings are human figures, mostly naked women. In the painting, the artist highlights three elements: the human figure, draped fabrics, and white color. The peculiarity of Omar’s works is a minimalist style, laconicism in conveying the subtle curves and lines of the body, and oil work.
Paul Cadden is a world-class contemporary artist from Scotland. For his works, Paul uses only white chalk and graphite, with which he can recreate almost any photograph, paying attention to imperceptible small details. As the artist himself admits, he does not invent new details, but only emphasizes them, thereby creating the illusion of a new reality, which is often not visible in the original photographs.
Kamalky Laureano- artist born in the Dominican Republic in 1983, currently lives and works in Mexico City. Kamalki graduated from the School of Design and Art and specializes in creating hyper-realistic portraits. The subjects are difficult to distinguish from real photographs, although they are painted with acrylic paints on canvas. For the author, his work is not just an imitation of photographs, but a whole life embodied on canvas.
Gregory Thielker- Born in New Jersey in 1979, he studied art history and painting at the University of Washington. Moving to Boston became the starting point for his work on the hyper-realistic cityscapes that made him famous throughout the world. Tilker's paintings are like traveling by car on a cold rainy day. Inspired by the works of artists of the 70s, the author creates his realistic paintings using watercolors and oil paints.
Lee Price is an artist from New York, graduated from the university with a degree in painting, and specializes in figurative painting. The main theme of Lee's works is the complex relationship of women to food. It’s as if the viewer is watching from the outside the women who secretly eat something tasty, but harmful. The artist herself says that in her works she tries to show the fact that women endow food with qualities that are not inherent to it, and seek solace in an inappropriate source. The paintings convey the absurdity of the situation, an attempt to escape from reality, to alleviate unpleasant sensations.
Ben Weiner born November 10, 1980 in Burlington, Vermont, graduated from the University of Art, paints in oils on canvas. The peculiarity of the artist’s works is an unusual plot. Ben paints! First, the artist applies paints to the work surface, photographs them, and then paints a picture on canvas from the finished photo.
Born in 1950 in Northern California, he is known for his realistic acrylic paintings on canvas. As a child, the author shared his love of drawing with his success in sports, but a back injury determined Ray’s main occupation. As the artist admitted, drawing distracted him from constant back pain. Even in his youth, the master received wide recognition and many awards at art competitions.
Alyssa Monks lives and creates her paintings in Brooklyn, has become widely known for her realistic “wet” paintings. The artist uses filters such as water, glass or steam to create abstract designs. For her work, Alyssa often uses photographs from the personal archives of family and friends. The women's faces and figures in the paintings are similar to each other - the artist often paints self-portraits, as she claims that it is “easier” for her to create the necessary plot.
Pedro Campos- hyperrealist from Madrid, began painting in oils only at the age of 30. The artist creates his realistic still lifes using oil paint. Campos has worked as an interior designer, illustrator, and art restorer of furniture, sculptures and paintings. The artist believes that it was his work as a restorer that helped him hone his skills.
Dirk Dzimirsky- artist from Germany, born in 1969, received an art education, works in pencil technique. The artist draws pictures from photographs, without going into the smallest details, and improvises a lot. Dirk says that when working on a painting, he imagines a living model, so he uses photos only to thoroughly convey predetermined proportions. The author considers his main task to be to create a feeling of the subject’s presence in the picture.
Thomas Arvid is an American hyperrealist artist from New Orleans, who was born and raised in Detroit, has no formal training, and is a master of the so-called “oversized” still life. His series of realistic paintings “Wine Cellar” are corks, bottles, glasses with sparkling or deep red drinks. Reputable critics and publications noted more than 70 works of the artist. The master’s paintings adorn not only the walls of wineries and prestigious wine salons, but also private collections and galleries.
Robin Eley born in Britain, raised and continues to live and work in Australia, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and has been awarded the Doug Moran National Portrait Award. He creates his hyper-realistic paintings in oils, and considers the subject “people and cellophane” to be his main “horse.” The master works on one painting for about 5 weeks, 90 hours a week, almost every painting depicts people wrapped in cellophane.
Samuel Silva is a Portuguese amateur artist without special education, who proves by personal example that you can create a masterpiece from anything. When creating paintings, the artist uses a palette of eight colors of ballpoint pens from Bic. Silva is a lawyer by profession, and considers his passion for drawing to be nothing more than a hobby. Today, the world-famous self-taught artist is mastering new painting techniques using paints, chalk, colored pencils, pastels, etc.
Gottfried Helnwein- Austrian artist, author of hyperrealistic paintings on social, political and historical themes, “a master of unexpected recognition,” as the writer W. Burroughs called him. The author was educated at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and is an artist of a high professional level. His fame was brought to some extent by controversial subjects and surreal compositions. The master often depicted comic book characters in his paintings and admits that he “learned more from Donald Duck than in all the schools he attended.”
Franco Clun is an Italian self-taught artist who prefers graphite drawing to all other artistic techniques. His black-and-white realistic paintings are the result of Franco’s independent study of various literature on painting techniques.
Kelvin Okafor- hyperrealist artist, born in 1985, lives and works in London. Kelvin received a degree in fine art from Middlesex University. The author creates his paintings with a simple pencil; the main theme of his work is portraits of celebrities.
Amy Robins is a British artist who uses colored pencils and construction paper for her hyper-realistic works. The artist has an art and design background and a BA Fine Art degree and lives and works in Bristol. Little is known about the young author, but her works have already become famous throughout the world, striking with their realism and execution technique.
Robert Longo- American artist and sculptor, born in Brooklyn in 1953, awarded the legendary Goslar Kaiser Ring award. The artist draws his three-dimensional images of nuclear explosions, tornadoes, hurricanes and sharks with charcoal on paper. Longo is often called the "painter of death." The famous painting Untitled (Skull Island) depicting a wave was sold at Christie’s auction in London for $392 thousand.
Diego Fazio- a self-taught artist, born in 1989 in Italy, has no art education, began by developing sketches for tattoos, and over time developed his own drawing technique. The young artist took part in many international competitions, where he won prizes and was represented at exhibitions around the world. The artist works under the pseudonym DiegoKoi.
Bryan Drury born in 1980 in Salt Lake City, has a diploma from the New York Academy of Arts, creates paintings in the genre of realism. The artist paints his paintings using oil paints. As the author admits, in his works he tries to focus on the organic qualities of the skin and its shortcomings.
Steve Mills is an American artist who sold his first painting at the age of 11. The artist creates his paintings with oil paints, focusing on the smallest details of everyday life, which we often do not notice in our eternal rush. The artist notes that he depicts objects as they are in real life, without changing or exaggerating their original form.
Paul Lung born in Hong Kong, draws with an automatic pencil on A2 sheets. The peculiarity of the technique of creating paintings is the fundamental refusal to use an eraser; all works are drawn completely. The artist’s main “muses” are cats, although he also paints people and other animals. Each work takes the author at least 40 hours.
Roberto Bernardi born in Italy, became interested in hyperrealism at the age of 19, worked as a restorer in the Church of San Francesco. To create paintings she uses oil paints. A series of works depicting objects characteristic of a consumer society brought the artist worldwide fame. Paintings with sweets, vending machines, refrigerator shelves are the artist’s calling card, although his arsenal includes landscapes, still lifes and much more.
Juan Francisco Casas is a Spanish artist who creates his paintings with a regular Bic ballpoint pen. Casas was a traditional artist who decided to prove to others that it is not the material for work that is important, but the method and technique of painting. The very first exhibition of the creative Spaniard brought him worldwide fame. Most of Casas's paintings depict his friends.
Teresa Elliott is an American artist who, before creating realistic oil paintings, successfully worked as an illustrator for 26 years. Teresa has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, returned to classical art, and became famous throughout the world for her portraits, truthful to the smallest detail.
