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Surreal Architectural Ink Drawings Endlessly Loop Around Wood Cutouts

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawings

Spanish artist Vasco Maourão (aka Mister Mourão) has graduated from paper to sinewy wood cutouts as the support for his latest project Ouroborus. Circling in an infinite loop, the highly detailed ink drawings have no end and no beginning. It's mesmerizing art that plays with the form and shape of each wood piece to create surreal architectural sketches.

Mourão begins by cutting plywood into a variety of shapes. Then, as an architect turned illustrator, he unleashes his obsessive mind for drawing onto the wood. The result is fanciful architectural drawings that flow into one another, creating an imaginary city without end. “Departing from my traditional medium of pen and paper, this is a new line of work that lies between a sculpture and a two dimensional drawing,” Mourão shares with us via email.By working on plywood, these pieces are freed from the typical frame and the physical limits of the pieces are integral part of the work.”

The series, which was recently on view at Barcelona's Espacio 88 gallery, is also available for purchase via the artist's website.

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawings

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawings

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

mister mourao OUROBORUS pen ink drawing

Mister Mourão: Website | Instagram

My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Mister Mourão.

Jessica Stewart

Jessica Stewart is a Staff Editor and Digital Media Specialist for My Modern Met, as well as a curator and art historian. Since 2020, she is also one of the co-hosts of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. She earned her MA in Renaissance Studies from University College London and now lives in Rome, Italy. She cultivated expertise in street art which led to the purchase of her photographic archive by the Treccani Italian Encyclopedia in 2014. When she’s not spending time with her three dogs, she also manages the studio of a successful street artist. In 2013, she authored the book "Street Art Stories Roma" and most recently contributed to "Crossroads: A Glimpse Into the Life of Alice Pasquini." You can follow her adventures online at @romephotoblog.
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