From afar, these images look like black and white photographs, and up close, they might appear to be the work of digital enhancement.
In fact, these exquisite portraits and still lifes are simply the work of graphite pencils, smudging tools, and the steady hand of artist Monica Lee.
Artist Monica Lee uses graphite pencils and smudging tools to produce complex, photorealist drawings, including this one (pictured) entitled Alisa
Ms Lee, who is Malaysian, draws her images from photographs, and says she wanted to capture the ‘intensity of her gaze’ for this portrait
‘I like to challenge myself with complex portraits; especially people with freckles or beards,’ the artist, who says it takes her two to three weeks to complete each drawing, tells MailOnline. ‘And I’m addicted to details. I like drawing in as much details as I can into my work.’
A scene from Shanghai, which took Ms Lee six weeks to complete. ‘It’s the most complex and challenging piece I’ve done so far,’ she reveals.
Ms Lee, who is Malaysian, used to be a digital imaging artist for a photography studio but quit after 12 years and took up analog drawing instead, which she has been doing for almost a year now.
This is one of the artist’s rare color drawings, and depicts an exotic Great Hornbill
Her background in photography has given Ms Lee an eagle-sharp eye for detail, which is evident in the mesmerizing intricacy of her work.
Macaw parrots are one of Ms Lee’s favorite subjects to draw
Ms Lee previously worked as a digital imaging artist for 12 years, before quitting to focus on analog drawing, which she has been honing for almost a year now
She uses a combination of graphite pencils, smudging tools – which add depth to certain aspects – a Q-tip, and only very rarely, a white gel pen.
Ms Lee draws from photographs using a grid system, copying them onto her paper square by square.
This image, entitled Night Beauty, is a drawing from last year, and is one of Ms Lee’s earlier forays into graphite drawing
Her portrait subjects mainly include humans and birds, but she has also drawn a still life which depicts a bottle of Macallan whiskey, and a scene from Shanghai, which took her six weeks to complete.
This drawing was copied from a photograph taken by the artist’s father, Melvin Lee, and took her four weeks to complete
The level of detail is sublime, right down to the complex reflections of light and the printed script on the labels
‘It’s the most complex and challenging piece I’ve done so far,’ she says.
The artist copies from the photographs using a grid system, filling in her page square by square
This portrait, entitled Sebastian, is of a random Instagram user, who Ms Lee approached and was then given permission to use
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