German Artist's eye-popping 3D paintings that jump off the page merging reality and art

An artist has produced a set of eye-popping pictures that jump off the page to blur the line between reality and art.  

Stefan Pabst's jaw-dropping illusion art is the result of decades of honing his skills that started as a five-year-old in Russia who recreated pictures from a bible. 

Having moved to Germany aged 15, he now uses a range of paint brushes for what he calls '3D drawing' using the trompe l'oeil technique - a French term meaning 'trick the eye'.

It takes him around three hours to complete his optical illusion creations included realistic-looking tarantulas, snakes and a range of drinking glasses.

Russian-born Stefan, who moved to Germany at age 15, began drawing at five when he copied images from an old bible.

Born in Russia but now living in Germany, the artist uses oil dry-brush techniques to create his masterpieces that jump out of the page.

Stefan began drawing at the age of five after he was inspired to recreate the elaborate images that featured alongside the passages of a 250-year-old bible.

The latest set of pictures feature in his new book The Art of 3D Drawing, which hows artists how to transform simple pencil sketches into jaw-dropping masterpieces.

Moving on to school, the budding artist admitted that he used to to doodle and paint in his books while in class.

'I drew the things I saw out of the window, like birds on the windowsill, but I mostly enjoyed drawing portraits of people,' he said.

'My classmates were impressed by my work and I started receiving portraits requests.'

As his drawings improved, Stefan found that his art classes were becoming increasingly straightforward.

So to stimulate his ability, he decided he needed to continue producing pieces of work at a high level and remembers drawing a pair of human lips – a painting that was again well-received by his classmates.

After school, Stefan, aged 15, moved to Germany where he joined a youth group and immersed himself in the world of art.

But it wasn't until he decided to draw a portrait for a friend on his birthday that his career really kicked off.

'There was broad encouragement for my art and a guest asked me why I have not made my hobby my profession,' he said.

'At that time I could not imagine living alone from art.'

The following week, Stefan began advertising his work online and immediately started receiving portrait orders.

Since then he created his own business and currently works as a full-time artist. 

He now receives orders from companies and social institutions and has drawn a number of singers, actors, football players and politicians.

His work is also used by an art school in America, who present images of his dry-brush-created paintings as learning material.

He said: 'I paint full-time and work every day in my studio.

'Many artists and art enthusiasts have contacted me with questions about my painting technique, so I now upload videos of my work to the internet.'

Stefan's work can be viewed on both his YouTube channel and his official website.