Tech

This artist paints on people's bodies to turn them into trippy 2D works of art

Chris Weller

2015-12-14T14:06:31Z

Alexa Meade's artwork is instantly recognizable: The subjects of her paintings are the paintings.

Meade, a Washington D.C. native based out of Los Angeles, paints directly on people's skin so that their three-dimensional bodies actually look like 2D works of art. The effect is head-turning, to say the least.

Here's a look inside Meade's innovative art form.

Meade got her start with painting when she was just a child. By the age of 16, she had stopped painting on traditional canvases.

The beginning of @exploratorium series! #selfie #sanFrancisco #art #installation

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Aug 4, 2015 at 10:48am PDTAug 4, 2015 at 10:48am PDT

In the beginning, she experimented by using black paint to cover up shadows from light sources.

#inprogress #spectacle #paint #art #arte #instagood #illusion #abstract #Installation

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Sep 1, 2015 at 7:11pm PDTSep 1, 2015 at 7:11pm PDT

"I realized that by painting in this style, I was able to seemingly collapse depth, making the entire scene, human and all, appear to be a 2D painting," she states on her website.

"Spectacle for The Metro Bus" #art #urbanart #streetart #installation #instagood #2010 #bodypaint

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Aug 24, 2015 at 6:04pm PDTAug 24, 2015 at 6:04pm PDT

The result totally confuses the viewer's brain in the most delightful way.

@exploratorium thank you so much for everything I had a blast! @karaswisher @azaaza #installation #art #paint #illusion

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Aug 7, 2015 at 4:19pm PDTAug 7, 2015 at 4:19pm PDT

Even when Meade stands beside her subjects, the illusion holds.

Behind the scenes #selfie #ThrowBackThursday #art #installation #GermanTV #instadaily #paint #photoshoot #illusion

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Jul 30, 2015 at 7:28pm PDTJul 30, 2015 at 7:28pm PDT

The process begins by designing and painting the backdrop of the shoot, which Meade says can take between two to five days.

Blackboard's revenge! Chalking up scientists at The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. #perimeterinstitute

A video posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Sep 24, 2015 at 9:55am PDTSep 24, 2015 at 9:55am PDT

Then she moves on to painting the clothes her model will wear, which takes between one to four hours. On the day of the shoot, Meade will add the finishing touches based on a model's skin tones and the backdrop.

An in process photo from my collaboration with @desigual

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Apr 25, 2015 at 9:41am PDTApr 25, 2015 at 9:41am PDT

Meade doesn't cover her models entirely in paint, however. There is one place her brush will not go ...

Depths. I suppose this could be called reverse photo realism?

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Aug 15, 2014 at 2:38pm PDTAug 15, 2014 at 2:38pm PDT

... the eyes.

Behind the scenes picture from residency at the #perimeterinstitute last month #throwback #instalike #instagood #art #Paint

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Oct 15, 2015 at 7:04pm PDTOct 15, 2015 at 7:04pm PDT

"I often prefer the look of leaving the real eyes as is," Meade states on her website. "I like the effect of the subject's gaze piercing through the paint and gripping the viewer, making the whole painting come to life and creating a tension between two and three dimensions."

The Leader 2, 2011 Archival Inkjet Print 18 in. X 24 in.

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Nov 23, 2015 at 11:13am PSTNov 23, 2015 at 11:13am PST

That tension can also extend into the real world, as not everyone is prepared for a living painting to be walking around.

"Transit" from 2009

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Nov 14, 2015 at 5:35pm PSTNov 14, 2015 at 5:35pm PST

But mostly people enjoy Meade's art when it's exhibited in galleries.

Natura Morta installation

A photo posted by Alexa Meade (@alexameadeart) on Feb 6, 2015 at 2:46pm PSTFeb 6, 2015 at 2:46pm PST

Meade tells Tech Insider that her latest work explores flaws in the creative process, like when an artist painting on a canvas begins with a flawed drawing.

"I painted a woman wearing a long dress that I pinned part of another dress to the bottom of, and I had her standing on a little stool," Meade says, "so her legs look very elongated in the dress, but you almost wouldn't notice that something's off."

Another model had long limbs and a thinner frame, which Meade wanted to stylize in such a way that reality could seem like the product of an artist's imagination.

"I wanted to accentuate hard angles in that," she says.

Mostly, she wants her art to fill people with wonder ...

... and maybe add a dash of color to the world in the process.

Check out more of Meade's artwork on her Instagram page.

Art Instagram