The talent required to create these Nolan Lee portraits is unfathomable. Just think about how difficult it is to illustrate a person in a realistic style, and then multiply that by using fire as your medium. That’s right, Lee literally burns his images into newspaper canvases in this series titled ‘Newspaper Burnings.’
Nolan Lee explains that he used wood burning tools to freehand render these extraordinary pieces of art. The pictures themselves are related to the stories found within articles, and he also chars the edges of certain pieces until they take on his desired shape. One particularly humorous depiction shows angry and sad faces on top of the stock listings.
Nolan Lee believes in creating purposeful art, and tries to explore themes of justice and redemption through his work.
Charred Periodical Portraiture
Nolan Lee Burns Newspapers into Realistic Looking Faces
Trend Themes
1. Newspaper Burnings - Creating realistic portraits using fire as a medium with wood burning tools can be a disruptive innovation for the art world.
2. Purposeful Art - Exploring themes of justice and redemption through art can be a disruptive innovation for the art world.
3. Article-inspired Art - Using newspaper articles as inspiration for art can be a disruptive innovation in the world of journalism and reporting.
Industry Implications
1. Art - The art industry can use burnt newspaper portraits as a new and unique medium.
2. Journalism - The journalism industry can see a new form of creative expression through article-inspired art.
3. Design - The design industry can explore the use of fire and burnt elements to create unique and purposeful art.