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Woman Gives Up Teaching To Create Optical Illusions With Makeup, And It’s Messing With Our Minds
Makeup is usually used for slightly adjusting the everyday look but some actually realize its true potential. Mimi Choi from Vancouver, Canada is one of them. She is a 31-year-old makeup artist who creates intense hyperreal optical illusions, and her amazing work has earned Mimi 274,000 followers on Instagram.
Before discovering makeup art, Mimi trained as a teacher and worked in a pre-school for three years. "I felt like my creativity was suppressed. I enjoyed teaching but I wasn't completely happy," she said. "I needed a new challenge." After leaving the classroom, she started experimenting with her makeup brushes at home.
"I've always been arty and had done bridal makeup before, which people really liked. I'd not done anything as crazy as the work I do now, though." Enrolling at a local beauty college really helped Mimi to take her skills to new heights. But things really took off when Halloween was just around the corner. "I wanted to do something different for October 31, so I had a look on Instagram and found a photo of a woman, who looked like her face had cracked."
"I'd never tried any kind of crazy make-up on myself, but I just got out my black and white eyeliner and gave it a go." And the rest is history.
Choi creates her mind-blowing work through masterfully understanding perspective, creating three dimensionality on a flat surface. She manipulates makeup like an artist uses his paint and places shadows onto her body to make her skin either pop out or recede back into the body.
More info: Instagram (h/t: mmm)
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That's creepy and more than a little gross, but as I look closely to see just how she made it all work, I am beyond impressed. Upvotes!
Agree!! Just think how she could use her talents for others!!
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Can't even tell where the hair actually stops and her real body begins!
If you like this, you should check out a young Swedish artist. Go to photos on her FB page, "Beyond bold and beautiful". Amazing! Personally I'm a big fan of her early work, scroll down on her photos. All of them is of her and she takes the pictures herself... Unbelivable
If you like this you should check out a young Swedish woman on her fb page "Beyond Bold and Beautiful" and go to photos... Amazing!
She is way too terrifyingly talented!!!! 😱 She ought to go into the makeup business for horror movies! 😳
Amazing talent. Just think what she could do for burn victims, or those people with disfigurement due to accident or illness. Her talent could be used for such good for others.
She's really talented! I love that her eyes are so fabulous while the rest of her is so terrifying!
this lady has a great job in the film industry or theatre world even the fashion world would pay lots of money for this type of effects on their top models. Hope she gets recognised for her talent
She should be employed by a major motion picture outlet as a cosmetics prop creator---- she could make millions! Of dollars! Wow, skillfull and amazing.............. I bet her kids win the best halloween costome ever year!
I have seen MANY exceptional make up artists, but you are hands down, the best I have ever seen.
someone wrote something about nightmares in the comments before this pic, but I think... this pic here is worst. worst, but best. very nicely done
Forget my last comment: THIS looks like the girl from the opening scene of Botched.
If I were her, I'd go out in public and act as if nothing were unusual.
that's incredibly creative! it's disturbing, but funny at the same time
While these are different and get your attention, there is no doubt this lady is loaded with talent. A consummate artist indeed, and why not use the face as a canvas? Most impressive.
WOW - these are amazing, i wouldn't want to meet any of these girls on a dark night
DAMN!!!! Please tell me you do this professionally!?!!! You are scary talented!
Wow, super creepy, realistic, great job. Can definately give one hibbie-jibbies.
Holy s**t, these are crazy good!! (I realize someone already said crazy good, but damn, they are crazy good!)
Have you tried sending your portfolio over to some horror movie production companies? I think they'd be very interested.
VERY talented! You need to send your portfolio to AMERICAN HORROR STORY they would be fools not to hire you. Or even FACE OFF the reality show on SciFi channel. You are an amazing talent, hope you go very far!
Awesome just awesome! what's next for art can only imagine what the future brings :)
Unbelievable I wish I could use makes up to make my self look 30 yrs younger she probably could do that . What's her number!!!!
She has a part of a Steven King personality but her work speaks for it self. Good Job!
These are great! I can't even make a skull face. lol
This person is disturbed. Why would you want to distort a face like this?
It took me far too long to figure out how she did #2. LOL These are AMAZING!
I would like to work with them, but I rather not do it drunk or under the influence of anything.
It only looks good from a specific angle in the front .. can't walk around with it on and get the effect
These are all photoshopped except that ones that actually do loo like they were done with makeup....
Love this girl, she does some snazzy (are people still aloud to say this, I'm over forty) work. Mind boggling!
creepy and amazing! I love how some of them, the blacks are so dark that even the shadows of her face disappear. Some, the 'eyes' are so real I have to actually find which are her real eyes by position.
Unreal! I wonder what she dreams about at night. Probably the best surreal make-up ever!
The ones that are actual optical illusions are awesome!! The other ones that are like halloween-esque type of make-up looks are not bad but definitely prefer her illusion work more!
I've seen many face painters before. But the fact that she can do this so well in herself is amazing! She's talented, creative and I'd love to see her in Face Off, I think she'd win!
These are amazing, she's got a great eye for detail. The psychologist in me can't help but be worried about what is going on in her head to think up such weird images.
You are the most talented I have ever seen! You have an INCREDIBLE career and life ahead of you young lady! How long has the most difficult one taken you?? And which one was it?
This is so wrong! My mind is lost! Really incredible, creepy and realistic make up
Hum...I would love for her to teach my daughter. I'm sure her class would be creative and engaging. I bet she would spark their imagination and be a teacher no child would ever forget. I guess I just have a crazy idea that kids should embrace art, appreciate talent and discover beauty in people's differences...but to each his own, I suppose.
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WOW - these are amazing, i wouldn't want to meet any of these girls on a dark night
DAMN!!!! Please tell me you do this professionally!?!!! You are scary talented!
Wow, super creepy, realistic, great job. Can definately give one hibbie-jibbies.
Holy s**t, these are crazy good!! (I realize someone already said crazy good, but damn, they are crazy good!)
Have you tried sending your portfolio over to some horror movie production companies? I think they'd be very interested.
VERY talented! You need to send your portfolio to AMERICAN HORROR STORY they would be fools not to hire you. Or even FACE OFF the reality show on SciFi channel. You are an amazing talent, hope you go very far!
Awesome just awesome! what's next for art can only imagine what the future brings :)
Unbelievable I wish I could use makes up to make my self look 30 yrs younger she probably could do that . What's her number!!!!
She has a part of a Steven King personality but her work speaks for it self. Good Job!
These are great! I can't even make a skull face. lol
This person is disturbed. Why would you want to distort a face like this?
It took me far too long to figure out how she did #2. LOL These are AMAZING!
I would like to work with them, but I rather not do it drunk or under the influence of anything.
It only looks good from a specific angle in the front .. can't walk around with it on and get the effect
These are all photoshopped except that ones that actually do loo like they were done with makeup....
Love this girl, she does some snazzy (are people still aloud to say this, I'm over forty) work. Mind boggling!
creepy and amazing! I love how some of them, the blacks are so dark that even the shadows of her face disappear. Some, the 'eyes' are so real I have to actually find which are her real eyes by position.
Unreal! I wonder what she dreams about at night. Probably the best surreal make-up ever!
The ones that are actual optical illusions are awesome!! The other ones that are like halloween-esque type of make-up looks are not bad but definitely prefer her illusion work more!
I've seen many face painters before. But the fact that she can do this so well in herself is amazing! She's talented, creative and I'd love to see her in Face Off, I think she'd win!
These are amazing, she's got a great eye for detail. The psychologist in me can't help but be worried about what is going on in her head to think up such weird images.
You are the most talented I have ever seen! You have an INCREDIBLE career and life ahead of you young lady! How long has the most difficult one taken you?? And which one was it?
This is so wrong! My mind is lost! Really incredible, creepy and realistic make up
Hum...I would love for her to teach my daughter. I'm sure her class would be creative and engaging. I bet she would spark their imagination and be a teacher no child would ever forget. I guess I just have a crazy idea that kids should embrace art, appreciate talent and discover beauty in people's differences...but to each his own, I suppose.
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