Meet Liu Bolin, the real-life Invisible Man from China, an artist with the ability to disappear in any surroundings.
Born in 1973 in Shandong and a graduate of Shandong Art College and Beijing’s Central Academy of Fine Arts, Liu Bolin became popular for his mastery at the art of camouflaging himself against virtually any background.
One single photo takes up to 10 hours to prepare - Liu uses himself as a blank canvas, and with a little help from an assistant, he paints his body to merge as seamlessly as possible with what is behind him. The results are incredible – sometimes passers-by don’t even realize he is around until he moves.
While his camouflage artworks are really mind blowing, he’s here with a message: “The situation for artists in China is very difficult and the forced removal of the artist’s studio is in fact my direct inspiration of this series of photographs, Hiding In The City…I am standing, but there is a silent protest, the protest against the environment for the survival, the protest against the state.”
So, let’s take a look at 20 amazing Liu Bolin’s camouflage photos, and if you’d like to have a printable version of his artworks you can find them here. (Sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6)
1. Teatro Alla Scala
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2. Suo Jia Village – Modern China
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3. Graffiti
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4. Bird’s Nest
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5. Arles
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6. Hiding In The City – Telephone
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7. City Hiding
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8. Forklifts
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9. Shooting
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10. Hiding In The City No. 34
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11. City Hiding 53
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12. Hiding In The City No. 2
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13. Hiding In The City No. 62
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14. Hiding In The City
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15. City Hiding 27
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16. Hiding In The City No. 31
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17. Provisional Wall
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18. Car
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19. People’s Police
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20. Government Finance Information Board
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Camouflage Art by Liu Bolin (Part II)
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