A Showcase of Celebrity Fan Art
The internet has truly democratised just about every art form there is. Artists today have access to digital drawing programs that professionals use, as well as the more traditional art materials like canvas and watercolours.
Moreover, the internet has put celebrities closer to their fans, making them feel more accessible.
When these two things combine, it can result in some amazing fan art. Below is a showcase of some stunning examples of celebrity fan art.
Steve Carrell by JunebugHardee
This digital painting looks almost like a photograph, but the really impressive part is how the artist has captured Carrell’s trademark comedic style, where he makes us sympathise with his character as we laugh at him.
Rihanna by Brian Golden
Rihanna has had many looks over her career, and this digital painting captures her current incarnation. She looks hardened, but she never loses a softness and femininity that allows her to seem approachable.
Natalie Portman by JCapela
This digital portrait takes a surreal approach to fan art, without looking amateurish. Portman’s hair melts into inkblots while the bouquet she holds seems to explode from her, creating a dynamic quality that contrasts with the calm yet intense expression on her face.
Morgan Freeman by ~Tolio-Design
Morgan Freeman is associated with the wise, nurturing grandparents we all wish we had. No wonder he always plays God on film. This digital painting captures his innate warmth and radiance perfectly.
House (Hugh Laurie) by ~whmurai
This digital portrait takes a slightly different approach. The artist has turned House into a cartoon character, which really is appropriate, given the nature of the character. It plays up the humour Hugh Laurie brings to the role, whilst also underlining the character’s pessimism.
Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) by *JPRart
This digital portrait also depicts a famous character, but it almost does the reverse of the one above. Jack Sparrow scowls at the viewer, giving a sense of the darkness and depth that Depp gave the character.
Zoe Saldana by Joey-Zero
This digital portrait doesn’t reflect Saldana’s personality as much as the other portraits do with their subjects. Instead, it almost seems to imagine what Andy Warhol would be doing if he were still doing his Pop Art thing today.
LemmyKilmister by ~Life-takers-crayons
The first portrait in this showcase that is a photograph of a real work, this portrait of Lemmy is acrylic on canvas. It is rough, worn, totally hard-core, full of pride and nonetheless a little dignified, just like the subject himself.
Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) by ~shockwave-b2635488
Kurt Russell is a favourite of the artist, who used pencil and gouache on an unknown base to depict Stuntman Mike from Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof. The sunny background contrasts with the murderous character to a chilling effect.
Ed Cullen (Robert Pattison) by *Thorane
Despite what you may think of the subject, you’ll find it hard to argue that this portrait is not impressive. Using graphite on Bristol paper, the artist captured the mysteriousness of the character so accurately that it is hard to pull your eyes away from the subject’s.
And a few odd ones…
Not every piece of fan art is amazing, as the ones below demonstrate.
Kylie Minogue by ~Prince-Endymion
Using oil on canvas, the artist reimagined Kylie Minogue as manga character Sailor Moon. That is unsettling enough, but the odd angles on Minogue’s face and shoulders really pushes it into the arena of creepy portraits.
Robert Pattison by *VivalaVida
This is just about the polar opposite of the fan art above. This pencil on paper drawing depicts Robert Pattison, but his face seems too small and weirdly off-set on his head.
Whoopi Goldberg by ~Blueberry-Blueberry
This digital portrait of Whoopi Goldberg as the archetypal Great Mother really takes the crazy cake. Whoopi Goldberg as a venerated figure is odd enough, but replacing the baby Jesus’s head with a blueberry is simply inexplicable.
March 30th, 2013
All of them are great, but I personally find this one fascinating – Morgan Freeman by ~Tolio-Design. Great work mate.
April 3rd, 2013
Pretty nice collection.