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Artist Uses Hundreds of Screws to Create 3D Pointillist-Inspired Portraits

screw art paintings

Throughout the years, artist Andrew Myers has made a career out of the ubiquitous screw. We’ve marveled before at his stunningly realistic portraits of people that were all created with the ordinary building material. When you look at them straight-on, his screw art looks like a pointillist painting. But when viewed from another angle, Myer’s pieces reveal their sculptural side. His latest work deviates from the straightforward portraits and focuses instead on man-made objects.

Part of the awe that comes from viewing one of Myer’s works is the meticulousness that goes into their construction. Each of the hundreds of screws is perfectly arranged to form organic shapes. In addition, Myers creates layers of depth. Some of the screws are drilled deep into their automotive paint backgrounds, which casts shadows when lit just right.

Despite the rigidity of his chosen material, Myers has infused the pieces with a surprising sense of softness; he's produced convincing folds in a pair of boots and the weightlessness of a terrifying tornado. To further foster the illusion of realism, Myers uses oil paint to imbue the screws with color and fine details—but it doesn’t take much to turn reality on its head. You experience a totally different piece by moving just a few steps in another direction.

Artist Andrew Myers creates incredible screw art that looks like a pointillist painting.

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

screw art paintings

Andrew Myers: Website | Facebook

My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Andrew Myers.

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled 'Embroidered Life' that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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