30-year-old Italian artist Marco Grassi paints intricate drawings so realistically, they seem like photographs. What makes his beautiful paintings even more remarkable, however, are the slight unconventional details he “gives” to his characters. By doing this, Grassi starts balancing on a very thin line between hyperrealism and surrealism, perfectly messing with his audience minds.

“My goal is to stir deep emotions, trying to make people more sensitive,” Grassi told Bored Panda about his highly detailed drawings. “I want to combine reality and surrealism, exploring human thoughts and nature in a more personal way.” Some of his subjects appear as half-human and half-statues, some dress in colorful fabrics or acquire futuristic jewelry, but all of them are so convincing, we are left wondering why these striking and mysterious people look the way they do.

The amount of time Grassi spends on a single realistic painting varies depending on its size and complexity, but usually, the artist devotes at least several months to one portrait painting. “It is a very long work and requires extreme attention in all of its phases.”

By inserting surreal elements into the body (instead of portraying solely its super realistic features), Grassi seeks to highlight our dual way of being: “Our inner side, intimate and extremely sensitive, in opposition to our interest in the appearance of things, like a vase, a pot, a shell. Beautiful and precious, but empty inside.”

“The biggest challenge is always trying to maintain a level of extreme quality in these realistic artworks<...>, both for the human figure and applied elements, trying to create a homogeneous work of art in every aspect, as well as overcoming the idea of painting in a way that imitates photography exclusively.”

Scroll down to check out these unique artworks and just how masterfully Grassi recreates a huge variety of textures while maintaining subtle emotions.

More info: marcograssipainter.com | Facebook | Instagram

Green Queen

Empty Spaces

Focal Point

La Bellezza Del Tempo

Autocorpo

Virtual Reality

Blue Shawl

Phthalo Blue Green

The Garden

Gio B

Marco Grassi with Blue Shawl

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