Oddity Central

Artist’s Hyperrealistic Drawings Look Like Black and White Photos

Posted: 25 Sep 2012 04:11 AM PDT

The first time you see Dirk Dzimirsky’s hyperrealistic drawings, you’re convinced they’re black and white photographs. In fact, that’s the feeling you get when you see them for the hundredth time, they’re that good.

I love this kind of ultra-realistic drawings. Ever since I first saw Paul Cadden’s graphite masterpieces I’ve been pretty much hooked on these photo-realistic works of art. Dirk Dzimirsky is another one of those rare artists who have the capacity to practically create a photograph with their own hands. Using photos just for inspiration, he sets up basic proportions and then draws layer upon layer until he creates something incredibly realistic. He uses light and shadow to capture the emotional essence of each human being he portrays in his art. “I want to capture and describe a persons precence and specific inner self. Similar to what a detailed writer might employ in their analysis of an individual, I portray not only the physical attributes, but more importantly the subjects inner presence of life,” the artist says.

Dzimirsky started doing hyperrealistic drawings “as a direct reaction to the beauty mania in the media, the ongoing removal of human imperfections. You can’t see a non-photoshopped image in magazines these days,” and he considers these images to be anti-art that just lies to people. So he set out to create his own real photos, drawing everything he sees, from a person’s most beautiful features to their wrinkles and blemishes.

“I choose drawing over painting as this allows me to create many layers over layers of lines and dots which react to each other in order to create a vibrant texture with directions and movement. This approach enables the finished work to be viewed more by the "senses" as opposed to the standard visual observation of a photo. Personally, I view the practice of drawing as reminiscent of scratching on a surface to observe what's hidden underneath, where as the nature of painting projects more the inverse, covering and hiding details and forms that might have contributed to a sensuality of a work,” Dzimirsky says.

Photos © Dirk Dzimirsky

via Enpundit

Artist’s Hyperrealistic Drawings Look Like Black and White Photos was originally posted at OddityCentral.com

Chinese Billionaire Sells Canned Fresh Air to Raise Awareness about the Environment

Posted: 25 Sep 2012 03:00 AM PDT

It was bound to happen at some point, I guess. Chen Guangbiao, a famous Chinese businessman and philanthropist, has recently launched a line of canned fresh air collected from various parts of China and Taiwan. The product is called “Chen Guangbiao: Nice Guy” and sells for about $0,80.

It’s no secret China has a huge air pollution problem, but while authorities don’t seem to be taking any action to resolve it, billionaire Chen Guangbiao, aka “Brother Biao” is trying to raise awareness in a very original way. He has recently started selling canned fresh air collected from “revolutionary” areas of China, including Jinggang Mountain in Jiangxi Province and some ethnic minority areas and Taiwan. ”One only has to open the can, directly ‘drink’ it or put the nose close to the can to breath deeply,” Chen said. He also mentioned there is a chip in the can, and during the “packaging process”, when the negative oxygen ions reach a certain concentration the lid is triggered by the chip and closed. And since the air is compressed, it stays inside the can even without a lid, the quirky philanthropist claimed. Before the big launch of ”Chen Guangbiao: Nice Guy” canned air, Brother Biao said he was confident of its success, because there are lots of people in big cities inhaling air mixed with vehicle exhaust every day who are dying for a breath of fresh air.

Chen first announced his big idea back in August, but it received some negative feedback from Internet users who accused the philanthropist of showing off and questioned his right to sell the air, since it doesn’t really belong to him. In the meantime, Brother Biao has changed his marketing strategy, and now says his not only fresh, but also comes from revolutionary areas of China. He’s also mentioned he will be donating part of the proceeds to the Chinese military, to support their effort in defending the Diaoyu Islands. And if that wasn’t enough t convince people to buy his canned air, he also told them to hold on to the empty cans, as he will buy them back in 10 years, for about$7 each.

But come on, nobody’s going to fall for the old canned air routine, right? Wrong, ”Chen Guangbiao: Nice Guy” air cans were flying off the shelves from the first day they were introduced, and they sold out in a matter of days. Just goes to show you people will buy anything… It’s clear this wasn’t about making a profit, since Chen is actually a billionaire, and 100,000 cans at $0.80 is probably pocket change for him, but maybe he just likes to prove to himself that he can actually sell anything.