Dutch artist Jan Is De Man has teamed up with fellow street artist Deef Feed to create a fanciful tri-level trompe l’oeil mural bookcase on an apartment building in Utrecht, Netherlands.
The site for the gigantic mural came before the concept. “The first idea was to paint a smiley. A very big smiley. Because I believe people become more happy when they see a smiley every day. But this idea didn’t feel complete, it felt too simple,” he told Bored Panda.
After evaluating the canvas, he came up with the idea for a “visual illusion in art, especially as used to trick the eye into perceiving a painted detail as a three-dimensional object.”
“I studied the shape of the house and the location where this house stands in and suddenly the idea of making a huge bookcase hit me. I love making illusions on walls and I like to see smiles on people’s faces and this idea (I thought meanwhile) could bring all this together,” he added.
Both artists wanted to involve the residents’ views so they asked for their favorite books and were able to put in 8 different languages. Since the mural has been unveiled to the public, it has become a creative source to bring the neighbors together and for others to stop by and take selfies.
“The neighborhood where this work was made is filled with different cultures. And I’ve noticed that this project brought (and hopefully for as long as it lasts) people together without pushing it. They meet each other through books.”
