Good travelers seek out adventures and stories—as well as classic world landmarks.

These are not just icons of their countries. These structures offer travel inspiration, whether we are standing in front of one for the first time, passing by one for the hundredth time and seeing it in a new way, or studying a photograph or painting on a virtual journey.

We are so familiar with these monuments that they often seem larger than life . . . except, perhaps, when we find them on the point of a pencil.

Small is Beautiful

Russian artist Salavat Fidai offers us the world in miniature. When looking at his creations, it is easy to imagine an “Oh, I see” moment of small is beautiful.

Salavat’s dedication to bringing his sculptures to perfection makes each of his pencil lead carvings even more incredible than simply a tiny world in graphite. “Each piece is a part of my soul,” he says.

Practically speaking, his petite sculptures are a large part of his soul. He spends many night-owl hours (after his family has gone to bed) with his magnifying glass, X-acto knife, and a carefully selected thick-leaded art pencil just right for the carving.

“I experiment with different tools,” Salavat says, “But I think I would be happy creating art out of anything.”

He creates many types of miniatures, including paintings on matchboxes and pumpkin seeds, as well as larger canvases with oils. But it is the pencil carvings that give him the greatest pleasure.

The Challenge of Graphite

The pencil lead creative process is a meditation, he explains. It is also a lesson in precision and perseverance.

He must calculate just how much pressure the lead can bear. “Will I be able to make a micro sculpture and not break the fragile graphite?” is a question he asks himself each time.

He often masters the required balance the hard way, with broken pencils and lost hours. He defends his mis-steps poetically. “Shit happens.”

Before he perfected one of his favorite character carvings—Darth Vadar—six pencil tips bit the dust, often near the end of hours of work. The investment of hours and the intricacy of the subject make the final sculpture even more appreciated.

He keeps things interesting with a wide range of subjects, from world landmarks to pop culture personalities to a freedom fist in honor of the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists.

He interacts often with his followers on social media, appreciating all comments—from the simple “OMG” and “Awesome” to the more concerned, “Why do you keep doing this when you could die from lung cancer?”

A Deep-Rooted Love of Art

Salavat began this new profession last year after he was laid off from a law practice in Ufa, Russia. Rather than pursuing his law career in another firm, he decided to experiment with an old passion.

Both his parents are art teachers, so the love of art was already deeply rooted in his life. He studied the work of pencil lead artist Dalton Ghetti and is continually inspired by the impressionists, especially Vincent Van Gogh.

Just as he was influenced by his parents, so too does he motivate his own children. They are drawn to the artistic life.

He offers to them the advice he lives by himself. “Experiment . . . and don’t be afraid to make a mistake.”

It’s worth it. Salavat’s pencil lead art takes us on an amazing world tour. Travel inspiration of the best kind—a journey of imagination.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

$\"Pencil$

The Eiffel Tower rises majestically . . . on the tip of a pencil.
\u00a9 Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n

Russian Artist’s Tiny Carvings Get Right to the Point<\/h2>\n
Good travelers seek out adventures and stories\u2014as well as classic world landmarks.<\/p>\n
France\u2019s Eiffel Tower. England\u2019s Big Ben. Italy\u2019s Colosseum.<\/p>\n
These are not just icons of their countries. These structures offer travel inspiration, whether we are standing in front of one for the first time, passing by one for the hundredth time and seeing it in a new way, or studying a photograph or painting on a virtual journey.<\/p>\n
We are so familiar with these monuments that they often seem larger than life . . . except, perhaps, when we find them on the point of a pencil.<\/p>\n
$\"Pencil$
The tiniest of Big Bens
\u00a9 Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n
Small is Beautiful<\/h4>\n
Russian artist Salavat Fidai<\/a> offers us the world in miniature. When looking at his creations, it is easy to imagine an \u201cOh, I see\u201d moment<\/strong> of small is beautiful.<\/em><\/p>\n
Salavat\u2019s dedication to bringing his sculptures to perfection makes each of his pencil lead carvings even more incredible than simply a tiny world in graphite. \u201cEach piece is a part of my soul,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
$\"Pencil$
Varying graphite views of the Burj Al Arab in Dubai
\u00a9 Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n
Practically speaking, his petite sculptures are a large<\/i> part of his soul. He spends many night-owl hours (after his family has gone to bed) with his magnifying glass, X-acto knife, and a carefully selected thick-leaded art pencil just right for the carving.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s needed? A steady hand, an eye for detail, and patience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI experiment with different tools,\u201d Salavat says, \u201cBut I think I would be happy creating art out of anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
$\"Matchbox$
Fidai’s matchbox masterpiece pays tribute to Van Gogh’s Dr. Gachet.<\/p><\/div>\n
He creates many types of miniatures, including paintings on matchboxes and pumpkin seeds, as well as larger canvases with oils. But it is the pencil carvings that give him the greatest pleasure.<\/p>\n
$\"Pencil$
A pointed visit to Rome’s Colosseum
\u00a9 Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n
The Challenge of Graphite<\/h4>\n
The pencil lead creative process is a meditation, he explains. It is also a lesson in precision and perseverance.<\/p>\n
He must calculate just how much pressure the lead can bear. \u201cWill I be able to make a micro sculpture and not break the fragile graphite?\u201d is a question he asks himself each time.<\/p>\n
He often masters the required balance the hard way, with broken pencils and lost hours. He defends his mis-steps poetically. \u201cShit happens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before he perfected one of his favorite character carvings\u2014Darth Vadar\u2014six pencil tips bit the dust, often near the end of hours of work. The investment of hours and the intricacy of the subject make the final sculpture even more appreciated.<\/p>\n
He keeps things interesting with a wide range of subjects, from world landmarks to pop culture personalities to a freedom fist in honor of the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists.<\/p>\n
He interacts often with his followers on social media, appreciating all comments\u2014from the simple \u201cOMG\u201d and \u201cAwesome\u201d to the more concerned, \u201cWhy do you keep doing this when you could die from lung cancer?\u201d<\/p>\n
$\"Pencil$
An elegant point: The Burj Khalifa in Dubai
\u00a9 Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n
A Deep-Rooted Love of Art<\/h4>\n
Salavat began this new profession last year after he was laid off from a law practice in Ufa, Russia. Rather than pursuing his law career in another firm, he decided to experiment with an old passion.<\/p>\n
Both his parents are art teachers, so the love of art was already deeply rooted in his life. He studied the work of pencil lead artist Dalton Ghetti<\/a> and is continually inspired by the impressionists, especially Vincent Van Gogh.<\/p>\n
$\"Salavat$
The night owl, Salavat Fidai, in his studio\/workshop
Photo courtesy of Salavat Fidai<\/p><\/div>\n
Just as he was influenced by his parents, so too does he motivate his own children. They are drawn to the artistic life.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey need to find their own unique style and purpose,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
He offers to them the advice he lives by himself. \u201cExperiment . . . and don\u2019t be afraid to make a mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even if it means a pile of broken pencils.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s worth it. Salavat\u2019s pencil lead art takes us on an amazing world tour. Travel inspiration of the best kind\u2014a journey of imagination.<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Sdx3B6ewFX0<\/p>\n
If video does not display, watch it here.<\/a><\/p>\n
Comment<\/a><\/i>\u00a0on this post below, or inspire insight with your own\u00a0OIC Moment\u00a0<\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":null,"protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":23395,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[190,511,126],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art-travel","category-russia-mappoints","category-art-creative"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23389"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23389\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40755,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23389\/revisions\/40755"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

Russian Artist’s Tiny Carvings Get Right to the Point

Small is Beautiful

The Challenge of Graphite

A Deep-Rooted Love of Art

A Deep-Rooted Love of Art<\/h4>\nSalavat began this new profession last year after he was laid off from a law practice in Ufa, Russia. Rather than pursuing his law career in another firm, he decided to experiment with an old passion.<\/p>\n