Source: JanIs DeMan
JanIsDeMan has taken #iseefaces to another level.
While the hashtag was created for Instagram creatives to post objects that reminds us of facial expressions, the dutch artist is making sure that architecture plays the role of teasing people’s brains.
Source: JanIsDeMan
Turning doors and balconies into mouths, his 3D graffiti murals across Utrecht houses and buildings are an intervention to the city’s facade. Most of the time, plastic "googly eyes” are painted above doors or in house facades to create a sense of observation, making pedestrians feel watched by funny houses with expressive “faces”.
Source: JanIsDeMan
In an interview for Bored Panda, JanIsDeMan explained a bit of the concept behind his smiley faces. “I believe people become happier when they see a smile every day”, he said.
The fact that Utrecht is named by Unesco the Creative City of Literature has also inspired JanIsDeMan’s work.
Located at Amsterdamsestraatweg & Mimosastraat intersection, the artist partnered with tattoo and graffiti artist Deef Feed for what has become sightseeing: the bookshelf mural.
“I studied the shape of the house and the location where this house stands in, and suddenly the idea of making a huge bookcase hit me. I love making 3D art illusions on walls, and I like to see smiles on people’s faces and this idea. I thought it could bring all this together”, he told Bored Panda.
Source: JanIsDeMan
They spoke to the local neighbourhood to make sure that it included their personality in it.
“We entered the community by asking people for their favourite books, and we were able to put eight languages and cultures together in the same concept. Everybody, every age, every culture, every language was welcome. The only rule I set up to participate in this art project was: no political books and no religious books. Besides that, every book title was welcome.”
Unlike many graffiti artists that make secret interventions, JanIsDeMan wants to include the neighbourhood’s soul into his art.
It is also the case for the massive Word Search mural he painted last year.
Source: JanIsDeMan
With the curation of Lunetten’s residents, 25 words were chosen to be presented in this unique word search puzzle.
You can read all the story behind it here and check-out the time-lapse of the whole painting process.
JanIsDeMan's artworks have appeared in the Street Art Museum Amsterdam and Pow Wow in Rotterdam.
He also painted murals in Boulogne-sur-Mer, London and Belgium.
Source: JanIsDeMan
Check out more of his work below:
Source: JanIsDeMan
Source: JanIsDeMan
Source: JanIsDeMan
Source: JanIsDeMan
Source: JanIsDeMan
Source: JanIsDeMan
Want to have a mural from JanIsDeMan? Contact him or visit his Instagram account for more reasons to smile.
