Arinze Stanley Egbe’s hyperrealistic drawings were on display at the Omenka gallery in Lagos Nigeria, via Konbini

Arinze Stanley Egbe is a brilliant artist, who draws portraits that are so realistic, we are honestly having a hard time believing they aren’t actually photographs (with everyone’s favourite black and white Instagram filter).

Using only charcoal and graphite pencils, Arinze’s hyperrealistic drawings are always impressive, and he seems to only be getting better.

Arinze, who has never attended an art class, says the “power of inspiration” was what got him started:

“I’ve got a slogan I work with and that’s ‘Practice, Patience, and Persistence’. They have actually guided me throughout the years and still guiding me till now.

Constant practice, I think, made me better at what I do but It would not have been possible without persistence and patience.”

See more and check out the artists instagram!

Every Tuesday is Art Tuesday here at Adafruit! Today we celebrate artists and makers from around the world who are designing innovative and creative works using technology, science, electronics and more. You can start your own career as an artist today with Adafruit’s conductive paints, art-related electronics kits, LEDs, wearables, 3D printers and more! Make your most imaginative designs come to life with our helpful tutorials from the Adafruit Learning System. And don’t forget to check in every Art Tuesday for more artistic inspiration here on the Adafruit Blog!