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Artist Paints Portraits of World Cup Superstars Using Only Her Feet and Soccer Ball

In light of the recent 2014 FIFA World Cup kick-off, Shaghai-based artist ‘Red' Hong Yi has painted a picture of three of the tournament's superstars – Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Lionel Messi. These aren't your conventional portraits, though. The artist used only her feet, a soccer ball, and eight trays of colored paints to complete the large-scale work. Amazingly, she was able to capture their likeness in a way that feels energetic, just like the game itself. This isn't the first time that Red has created a portrait using unconventional methods; we recently admired her Jackie Chan portrait made out of chopsticks.

To compose the painting, Red dips the ball into the pigment, bounces it between her feet, and carefully maneuvers it around the canvas. She begins by outlining their heads with yellow paint and later adds in the color of the players' jerseys as well as their defining physical characteristics. By doing this, it makes the three men immediately recognizable to the viewer. Watch the charming video below to see Red in action. Who said painting wasn't a workout?

Red Hong Yi website
via [designboom]

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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