I Can't Believe These

[choux]

are not photographs. I have been astounded by the artistry shown here:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/hnigatu/works-of-art-you-wont-believe-arent-photographs

I tried to pick my 4 favourites but I kept changing my mind. Not that keen on # 11 but the others I find fascinating.

Which 4 favourites would you pick?

[Zacs-Master]

As impressive as they are I'm not really sure they're art in the true sense of the word. They're just copies of photographs in many cases and at the scale they're drawn the detail is not that surprising. Art should be original and evoke emotions other than a superficial 'wow'.

[choux]

May I evoke over the bottle of wine then?

[Tuvok]

I know someone who does this and you can only tell when really close up to his work.

[tonyav]

Excellent, to difficult to pick only four though.

[ducksie]

I love 5 15, 19 and 23 the 2 frecked girls, the lady in the bath having a feed and sleeping later and the red wine ;)

[choux]

Well done ducksie for entering the spirit of the thread. tonyav - a man after my own heart.

[ducksie]

I love them all choux, but they are my favourites

[tonyav]

I do like them all really, No 6 Paintings of paint.

[sherrardk]

I can't draw for toffee - I think they are all amazing.

[Butterbun]

They're all wonderful. My pick would be 19, 21, 25, 27.

[ducksie]

I can't draw a straight line with a ruler so admire anything in art

do you know that the Mona Lisa is only looked at for 15 seconds before people move on
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2004/oct/19/art.france

I guess some folk are fed up of the old masters

[choux]

Unlike many in my family, I have no artistic talent. I am still trying to chose my favourites but I keep seeing merit the more I look.

[ducksie]

choux that's like something I should write, all my family are artists

[Cloverjo]

They are all amazing. I really admire people who have any artistic ability. Even though the works are copied from photos mostly, it takes a special talent to do that and make them so realistic. My favourites are 17, 18, 19 and 20.

[gen2]

Art looking like photographs?

This type of art is called Hyper-realism and you can see such portraits every year in the annual BP Awards Portrait exhibitions - often winning the award.

There was a big exhibition of Ron Mueck's sculptures/creations in Edinburgh a few years back. Very impressive (and very popular) but really only worth marvelling at the skill involved in their creation rather that at the finished product (at least, that was my reaction).

Before photography, one 'purpose' of art was to reproduce reality. Once photography was invented and colour photographic enlargements were possible, that took over the realism aspect of art and freed artists to be more inventive and imaginative.

Now the twist in the tail. The development of digital photography and computer programs to manipulate them has allowed photographers to produce photographs that look like art!

The full circle.

[Maydup]

Very difficult to pick top 4, they are all amazing, but these are most amazing I think. 7,8,25,27