Chameleon art: Hiding in plain sight
STERZING, Italy -- At first glance, Johannes Stoetter's work may have you seeing a parrot, or a chameleon, even a pile of bananas. But Stoetter is a master of using body paint as camouflage. His creations are actually humans, disguised through body paint.
It took him two hours, 10 pounds of bananas, and some paint to turn me into a fruit arrangement. But it's Stoetter's stunning animal creations that have brought him worldwide fame.
The frog he created is actually five interlocking humans. The parrot is a woman, one armed crooked over her head and her leg sticking straight out.
Stoetter is self-taught, but he has a natural gift for analyzing and matching color.
"Sometimes I feel as if something, like a higher power is painting through me, as if I was just a medium," said Stoetter.
Believe it or not, body painting is a competitive event and Stoetter won the World Championship in 2012. But he spends most of his time in the area where he grew up in the Italian Alps.
"Nature was always a strong thing for me," said Stoetter. "I think that inspired me very deeply."
Stoetter has experimented with camouflage against various natural backgrounds, but it's the tropical animal images that have become online sensations.
To see more of Stoetter's work go to: http://www.wbproduction.com/en/ and http://www.johannesstoetterart.com/
