Artist Influence Two :Juan Francisco Casas

Juan Francisco Casas: the most amazing pen artist I have come across so far.....

Image: Juan Francisco Casas "Casas’ latest works at SCOPE 2009 in New York"

 source: Preuss, S (2011) Incredibly Realistic Ballpoint Pen Drawings by Juan Francisco Casas

http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/offbeat-news/realistic-ballpoint-pen-drawings-juan-francisco-casas/14067

[accessed 28/3/2011]

When you think of a portrait you think paint, when you  think pen portrait I used to get simple as my answer. Casas's work is anything but that, to say it is amazing is a grave understatement. I first found out about Casas last year while researching about my favorite medium -fine line pen. After a copious amount of time spent viewing any boring, simple, ill compositioned images over google, I then spotted a highly realistic blue portrait image, with could only be a photograph right? oh how wrong i was ..

image: one of Casas's many portraits (could not locate name) 

The amazing amount of time that has been spent on the attention to detail sends your mind into a boggiling state but what is even more crazy is the shear size of the images he creates..

image: Casas working on one of his pen works 

In each work he uses at least 10 or more pen ball point pens. He buys packs at a time and tests all of them to see it they would suit his purposes for the image he wants to create. 

In an interview with the Daily Mail in February 2008, Casas said:

“I guess it started off as a joke, to try and make something so realistic that people would think is a photo. I also wanted to create it with something that everyone has – a Biro. I don't think it has ever been done before.”

"And hasn’t been done since, as far as we know. Juan Francicso Casas appreciates the ballpoint pen’s “simplicity” and stresses the fact that as an artist, it doesn’t really matter what material you use. The only drawback of using ballpoint pens? One can’t erase mistakes and can just hope to make them early on. No wonder then that one large drawing can take Casas up to two weeks to make." (Preuss, S, 2011)

 

 All in all this man is amazing.