Turning the media’s most disturbing images into art

Haunting hyperrealism — From pornography to tragedies – in his new book, British artist Craig Boagey turns confrontational photography into intricate pencil drawings.

There’s something deeply sinister about Craig Boagey’s drawings. The British artist, who specialises in hyperrealistic, pencil-drawn art, aims to recreate the most confrontational images he comes across in everyday media. This includes – amongst other things – blurred pornography, school shootings, and war-torn cityscapes.

Central Saint Martins graduate Boagey switches between red pencil (for images of a more sexual nature) and blue (for those that are more tragic and violent). Each drawing takes between three days to three weeks to complete. “The blue ones are always more difficult because the subject matter is a lot more significant,” he tells Huck. “I like to juxtapose things, so when you have these very delicate and difficult subjects the blue sort of makes them calming in a way – it takes away the intensity.”

These haunting images have now been pulled together for Recital – a new book published by independent, Dalston-based publisher Ditto.

“I’m not necessarily interested in current affairs, I don’t want to make drawings relating to today directly because it would kind of feel like protest art, and I don’t want that,” the artist explains. “The scenes I like to choose are moments in time which are just fascinating, and a lot of the time these incidents create a trend of other similar incidents. In that way, they become relevant to today without necessarily being stories of the moment.”

“I don’t want to shock directly that would be too forced. I want it to be subtle, that works best for me,” he adds. “There are exceptions but, in general, that’s my approach.”

Blue Lucifer, 2015

Blue Lucifer, 2015

Red Drawing #5, 2016

Red Drawing #5, 2016

Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni Hanging, 2016

Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni Hanging, 2016

Red Drawing #7, 2016

Red Drawing #7, 2016

Viet Cong Prisoner, 2015

Viet Cong Prisoner, 2015

Red Drawing #1, 2015

Red Drawing #1, 2015

Gaza, 2015

Gaza, 2015

Recital is published on October 26th, by Ditto.

Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.


Ad

Latest on Huck

Red shop frontage with "Open Out" branding and appointment-only signage.
Activism

Meet the trans-led hairdressers providing London with gender-affirming trims

Open Out — Since being founded in 2011, the Hoxton salon has become a crucial space the city’s LGBTQ+ community. Hannah Bentley caught up with co-founder Greygory Vass to hear about its growth, breaking down barbering binaries, and the recent Supreme Court ruling.

Written by: Hannah Bentley

Cyclists racing past Palestinian flag, yellow barriers, and spectators.
Sport

Gazan amputees secure Para-Cycling World Championships qualification

Gaza Sunbirds — Alaa al-Dali and Mohamed Asfour earned Palestine’s first-ever top-20 finish at the Para-Cycling World Cup in Belgium over the weekend.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Crowded festival site with tents, stalls and an illuminated red double-decker bus. Groups of people, including children, milling about on the muddy ground.
© Alan Tash Lodge
Music

New documentary revisits the radical history of UK free rave culture

Free Party: A Folk History — Directed by Aaron Trinder, it features first-hand stories from key crews including DiY, Spiral Tribe, Bedlam and Circus Warp, with public streaming available from May 30.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Weathered wooden building with a tall spire, person on horseback in foreground.
Culture

Rahim Fortune’s dreamlike vision of the Black American South

Reflections — In the Texas native’s debut solo show, he weaves familial history and documentary photography to challenge the region’s visual tropes.

Written by: Miss Rosen

A collage depicting a giant flup for mankind, with an image of the Earth surrounded by planets and people in sci-fi costumes.
Culture

Why Katy Perry’s space flight was one giant flop for mankind

Galactic girlbossing — In a widely-panned, 11-minute trip to the edge of the earth’s atmosphere, the ‘Women’s World’ singer joined an all-female space crew in an expensive vanity advert for Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. Newsletter columnist Emma Garland explains its apocalypse indicating signs.

Written by: Emma Garland

Three orange book covers with the title "Foreign Fruit" against a dark background.
Culture

Katie Goh: “I want people to engage with the politics of oranges”

Foreign Fruit — In her new book, the Edinburgh-based writer traces her personal history through the citrus fruit’s global spread, from a village in China to Californian groves. Angela Hui caught up with her to find out more.

Written by: Katie Goh

Huck is supported by our readers, subscribers and Club Huck members. It is also made possible by sponsorship from:

Accessibility Settings

Text

Applies the Open Dyslexic font, designed to improve readability for individuals with dyslexia.

Applies a more readable font throughout the website, improving readability.

Underlines links throughout the website, making them easier to distinguish.

Adjusts the font size for improved readability.

Visuals

Reduces animations and disables autoplaying videos across the website, reducing distractions and improving focus.

Reduces the colour saturation throughout the website to create a more soothing visual experience.

Increases the contrast of elements on the website, making text and interface elements easier to distinguish.