Surreal Art: How many creatures can you find?

Sean Lewis is a Toronto-based Canadian illustrator and visual development artist. He earned a Bachelor of Design in Illustration in 2011 and works in both traditional illustration and digital matte painting, focusing on editorial and visual development for films and media.

Lewis’ artwork often explores surreal and darkly humorous subjects, blending fantastical elements with familiar motifs. His subjects range from infamous outlaws and historical figures to more abstract, eerie depictions of nature and human experience. Lewis draws heavily from Japanese woodblock prints, which influence his use of graphic shapes and an earthy, worn aesthetic.

• What makes art surreal?

The characteristics of surrealism include strange images or bizarre juxtapositions, unconsciousness as a valid reality, dream-like artwork or symbolic images, automatism techniques to create random effects, distorted figures or biomorphic shapes, and chance or spontaneity.