The 10 most surprising emerging artists of this 2020

From “rotten” fruit sculpted in diamonds to Van Gogh’s life in comic form. We take a look back at the most striking artistic projects of 2020.

It seems difficult to find positive aspects of this unfortunate 2020, but whether we like it or not, there are positive aspects and we learn from everything. For our part, we have been able to witness first-hand an explosion of excessive creativity, due of course to a confinement that led us to an almost necessary fight against boredom, and led to our most creative side coming to the surface.

Proof of all this is the work that has emerged throughout 2020, some from artists spontaneously inspired by the historic events, others surely matured over the years and which we have echoed to spread the artist's implicit message. Here we summarize what we think have been the 10 most surprising emerging artists of 2020. We hope you enjoy them as much as we have.

1. The impossible hyperrealism of Darian Mederos

This Cuban artist based in Miami caused an explosion of ecstasy in our heads this 2020. His hyperrealism taken to the maximum (or minimum) detail has aroused massive interest on social media, and with good reason. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

2. Luke Rasmussen and his multicoloured art hidden in climbing

Beauty merges between photographic technique and extreme sport. Luke Rasmussen saw light where there was none and without being short or lazy he showed us the way, specifically the routes that he himself climbed while his camera captured the feat. Impressive photographs that freeze the passage of time in an unbeatable landscape. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

3. Balloon twisting and Biology: we talk about Masayoshi Matsumoto

Honestly, we didn't know that balloon twisting could be so detailed. When it's done with such a careful concept and aesthetics as the Japanese artist Masayoshi Matsumoto does, it easily catches our attention. And so it was, his balloon fauna and air from his lungs have been big news this 2020. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

4. Lewis Miller's floral mischief on the streets of New York

Yet another artistic intervention, this time carried out on the streets of New York, very much in line with the situation we have experienced in 2020, which sparked a special interest in us. Just as we see wild animals roaming around the cities, we can appreciate the impressive floral arrangements of the North American artist Lewis Miller, claiming the power and beauty of nature in emblematic spaces of the city of skyscrapers. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

5. Kathleen Ryan's fancy rotten fruit

One of our favorite discoveries has undoubtedly been the Californian artist Kathleen Ryan and her “rotten” fruits, in this case diamonds. An inherent contrast in her works that has attracted the attention of the general public and has been acclaimed by critics, leading the artist to exhibit her opulent rotting fruits in renowned galleries around the world. You can learn more about her work by clicking here .

6. Kit Layfield's surreal paradise masks

And masks became fashionable...or rather, they had to become fashionable. At the same time, illustrator Kit Layfield, in the midst of all the fuss, unified a message of vindication and irony (all together) in illustrations that reveal complex breathing montages in futuristic masks. If a pandemic comes in 200 years, will masks be like this? You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

7. Alireza Karimi and his biographical comic about Van Gogh

It is true that you don't have to look very far to find the work of Iranian illustrator Alireza Karimi Moghaddam. His work is well known on social media and it will surely have struck you at some point on your mobile screen. In any case, we think it is worth mentioning both for its originality and for its technique of imitating the life and work of the Dutch genius in its digital version. But above all, we included it in our summary for the good vibes it gave us this year, which we needed. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

8. Juan Aballe captures the nostalgic ambiguity of emptied Spain.

Although this project predates the lockdown, it has a lot to do with it. With his project Country Fictions, Madrid-based photographer Juan Aballe shows us the ambiguity and uncertainty experienced by the inhabitants of empty Spain in their daily lives. Just as the streets of Spanish cities were emptied due to the lockdown, his photographs show the romantic and hopeful side of some lonely spaces. You can learn more about his work by clicking here .

9. Botany + watercolors. The perfect combination of Spanish portrait artist Riso Chan

Exploring, exploring, we came across the exciting portraits of Riso Chan, which was love at first sight. At first we were confused by the fact that the project came from Amsterdam (and the name of the artist, let's not kid ourselves), but when we realized that the artist was of Spanish origin, then we felt a little extra pride. Angela fills her watercolor portraits with botany and nature with a unique technique. You can learn more about her work by clicking here .

10. Embroidery reinterprets history in the work of Victoria Villasana

Just when we thought we had seen it all this year, Victoria Villasana appears and dazzles us with her colorful embroidery that dresses great characters from history. What can we say about the Queen of England dressed in a Mexican-style bison… well, it is scandalous and that is why we love it. You can learn more about her work by clicking here .