1010

Poland

Born in 1979, 1010 is a Hamburg-based contemporary artist known for his enigmatic, portal-like street art illusions on walls around the world. Originally from Poland, 1010 moved with his parents to Germany, when he was eight years old. For more than a decade, the artist has been painting walls and making papercuts. Previously he has created contemporary abstract birds and snakes, with some taking on tie-dye and painterly textures with an almost computer generated smoothness. For the past few years 1010 has been mostly focused on an abstract concept of making “holes on the walls”.

1010, pronounced “ten-ten”, is widely recognized for his amazing works that trick the mind to appear like holes and three dimensional shapes on walls. Every piece from his series of op-art murals seem like colorful portals inhabiting the urban landscape. The obvious layers of concrete lead to darkness and they are so realistically done that it is hard to believe they do not have the depth.

The process of making this kind of artwork is very specific. Firstly, 1010 picks a pattern which reflects the building it is painted on, so the mural would fit perfectly on the wall, looking as if it has been created naturally over time. 1010 works out from the dark centre of his image, layer by layer, to reach the lightest shades of colour on the periphery of his piece creating breathtaking shapes that burrow their way into the sides of buildings creating mural which joyfully plays with time and space. 

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