Charlotte Foster
Art

Artist’s mind-mending portraits age before your eyes

Throughout art history, many artists have used the craft of optical illusions to trick their audiences into believing their art can shift and change before their eyes. 

This is a craft that self-taught artist Sergi Cadenas has mastered, as his intricate portraits seem to age before the viewers with a simple shift of perspective. 

His portraits contain dual images, as they transform from young to old as you move from one side of the artwork to the other. 

In one of his works, the face of a woman ages several years when you take a few steps in the opposite direction. 

In another, the piercing blue eyes of a young girl morph into the inky black ones of a little boy.

Sergi, who began his career as an artist in his 30s, was inspired by flip-books he had seen as a child to create his own distinctive technique. 

Using a piping bag intended for decorating cakes, the artist creates vertical ridges on the canvas to provide a relief upon which he can paint two separate images.

Each subject in Cadenas’ paintings can be individually viewed by simply observing the artwork from one side or the other. However, the transformative nature of his work allows him to address deeper themes and meanings of society. 

Some of his paintings confront complex subjects, such as the fleeting nature of youth, mortality, the dichotomy of emotions, and even racial equality. 

In an interview with Augustman, Sergi said, “My paintings reflect the candid, natural moments of people — memorialising their portraits in time. My portraits of famous people however, allow us to see the beauty, gifts, and transitory nature of time.”

Image credits: Instagram 

Tags:
art, portrait, ageing, illusion