Art has come a long way since the days of Van Gogh. Pieces like Starry Night will always have a place in history and no doubt played as a stepping stone to aspiring artists today. But, while those pieces are very beautiful and priceless, you can definitely tell that they’re just a canvas with some paint. In recent years, techniques, technology, and talent have brought up a style called hyper-realistic artwork.

Your mind might think that the image above was taken in real time with a 4K camera. Your mind would be wrong. That is actually a piece of hyper-realistic artwork.

Often times, this particular style means hundreds of hours spent leaning over a table. The attention to detail is far beyond any normally painted canvas, no matter what style is used.

This image is an oil painting created by Robin Eley, who, to say the least, is very good at what he does.

As you can see, there are many techniques to getting a hyper-realistic finish. It completely depends on the talent and dedication of the artist.

When creating hyper-realistic artwork, you have to consider lighting angles, perspective, shadowing, colors, texture, and much more. It’s no longer an image on a canvas, but a perfectly detailed portrayal of a real thing.

It goes far beyond painting and drawing. There are a select few that have taken this technique off the paper, and into their own hands.



The man pictured above is Ron Mueck. This is an image of him working on one of his big pieces. As real as it looks now, it doesn’t even compare to how it looks finished:

It would be nearly impossible to distinguish this from an actual photo. Every little detail has been thought about and nailed perfectly. You can see the wrinkles in the skin, the unevenness of the fingernails, the veins in their arms, and even varying shades of their skin all over their body. It’s absolutely incredible.

There’s so much to behold in the world of hyper realistic artwork. The possibilities are endless. Here are a couple of my favorites:

This style of art shows the beauty in the world around us. These artists merely took what they saw and mimicked it as best they could. No doubt this is the handiwork of very talented and gifted individuals, but it goes to show not only the importance of practice and dedication but the power of the human mind.