Every White Line in these Ultra-Realistic Animal Portraits is Just a Scratch

(Before It's News)

Original article on OddityCentral.com – a blog on oddities and wacky news http://www.odditycentral.com/

We’ve seen highly talented artists burn paper, roller skate, and even kick a football around to create art. But here’s something new – Illinois artist Allan Ace Adams actually scratches away at paper to create breathtaking animal portraits. It’s called scratchboard art, and it involves using an exacto knife to scrape away a top layer of black ink off the canvas to reveal the white clay underneath.

A scratchboard is actually a hardwood board coated with a thin layer of porcelain clay. Another thick layer of black ink is added on top of the porcelain, which the artist has to scratch off in order to create an image. “I explain to people that I’m scratching in the highlights instead of the ‘darks’ like you would with a graphite drawing,” Adams wrote on his website. “Shades of gray can be achieved by how much ink is removed or by applying an ink wash. The ink wash can be scratched back though to reveal the white once again.”

• Thou Shalt Not Steal: Guy Gets Tattoo of Jesus, Walks Out without Paying
• The Endurance Race So Hard That Only 14 People Have Completed It in 30 Years
• Seemingly Indestructible Kung-Fu Master Takes a Drill to the Head Without Even a Scratch
• Woman Finds Kidney Donor with Message on Car Window
• BIGFOOT Breaks Man’s Leg From Behind
• The Heartbreaking Story of a Man Who Has Spent the Last 18 Years on the Road Looking for His Missing Son
• Artist Turns the Ashes of Loved Ones into Beautiful Jewelry
• Finally! Japanese Company Creates Onion That Doesn’t Make You Cry
• Shocking Mexican Drinking Game Has People Electrocuting Themselves for Fun
• Chinese Artist Paints Large-Scale Mountain Landscape Using Roller Skates