By . Jennifer Smith . PUBLISHED: . 09:42 EST, 24 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:07 EST, 27 August 2013 . A Scottish artist has produced an astonishingly lifelike collection of portraits using nothing more than charcoal and paper. Douglas McDougall from Glasgow created the drawings of good friends and people who he would simply like to know better as a 'way of encapsulating and understanding the ongoing museum of human experience.' Mr McDougall uses charcoal and scalpel blades to achieve the ultra realistic finish of his drawings . The collection features good friends of the artist and people he would like to get to know better . Mr McDougall learned how to draw as a child when suffering a blood disease which landed him in hospital . After sketching the portraits with charcoal, the artist textures the paper with scalpel blades, sharp cut erasers and sandpaper. The end result is a hyper-realistic image which can easily be mistaken for a black and white photograph. Mr McDougall's depiction of weathered skin and grey hair is particularly lifelike. 'Creative surrogacy': Mr McDougall describes his unusual introduction to art as a child drawing tubes and wires from his hospital bed . 'By carving into the paper one can feel the power, and the magic and the luck. The face is a mirror of the soul, for better or worse. 'Portraiture is my way of encapsulating and understanding the ongoing museum of human experience, to show who we really are. Mr McDougall said he's able to feel a certain kind of magic by using charcoal and blades to cut into paper . Mr McDougall talks about an 'intimacy deficit' on his blog after describing the 'removal of my natural parents' Mr McDougall talks about an 'intimacy deficit' on his blog after describing the 'removal of my natural parents' Each portrait is a study into the personality of the subject which ultimately links to the timeline of mortality, says Mr McDougall . Mr McDougall, 50, learned to draw as a child after being forced in and out of hospital with a blood disease. He used the countless hours spent in hospital wards to sketch drawings of his surroundings. Born in Blackpool, Mr McDougall moved to Glasgow with his father at the age of five after his parents decided to separate. His mother suffered 'acute' post natal depression shortly after giving birth. The artist said: 'I was never to bond with her.' Soon after moving to Glasgow his father's business spread nationwide, and so he was passed on to close relatives to be looked after as his father had to travel the country for work. Waking the gods: McDougall said at times he feels as though he is waking the gods in his old fashioned style of art which resembles that of cavemen at times . It has been suggested that Mr McDougall's troubled childhood has inspired some of the darker elements to his work . 'i was never to have a bond with her':Mr McDougall's mother suffered acute post natal depression shortly after giving birth to him . According to Mr McDougall, each portrait is a path through the personality of the chosen study that 'links to the timeline of mortality itself.' 'Each piece is like an oracle of thought, a kaleidoscopic journey into a past, present and future. I feel it's honouring the tradition of drawing, bringing those early cave paintings or hieroglyphics into a modern synthesis. 'At times this work almost makes me feel like I'm personally waking the gods, and they really do have to virtually be brought into a breathing reality.' The artist's depiction of grey hair and aging skin seen throughout the collection of portraits is particularly striking . 'This is why I tend to push for a hyper-real result, and by using certain tools like Stanley and scalpel blades for sculpting/texture and highlighting, it helps create a kind of 'trompe l'oeil' illusion of form. 'For me the medium of Charcoal holds a double headed dynamic. 'It packs an old world feel to it that allows me to plug in and play with the terms of its historical theatrical elements, or ghosts of the past. 'It also provides a stunning foundation and plenty of room for the contemporary immediacy of it all. 'When I'm in the zone it's like having a black key to my own time machine. I reckon this must make me a charcoal obsessive compulsive adventurer' Douglas McDougall, pictured with one of his lifelike portraits, describes himself as a 'charcoal obsessive compulsive adventurer'
Douglas McDougall, from Glasgow, used charcoal and scalpels to create the photo like images .
His subjects vary between good friends and people he would like to know better .
The artist describes the face as 'a mirror of the soul - for better or worse'
See more of Mr McDougall's work here .
By . Jennifer Smith . PUBLISHED: . 09:42 EST, 24 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:07 EST, 27 August 2013 . A Scottish artist has produced an astonishingly lifelike collection of portraits using nothing more than charcoal and paper. Douglas McDougall from Glasgow created the drawings of good friends and people who he would simply like to know better as a 'way of encapsulating and understanding the ongoing museum of human experience.' Mr McDougall uses charcoal and scalpel blades to achieve the ultra realistic finish of his drawings . The collection features good friends of the artist and people he would like to get to know better . Mr McDougall learned how to draw as a child when suffering a blood disease which landed him in hospital . After sketching the portraits with charcoal, the artist textures the paper with scalpel blades, sharp cut erasers and sandpaper. The end result is a hyper-realistic image which can easily be mistaken for a black and white photograph. Mr McDougall's depiction of weathered skin and grey hair is particularly lifelike. 'Creative surrogacy': Mr McDougall describes his unusual introduction to art as a child drawing tubes and wires from his hospital bed . 'By carving into the paper one can feel the power, and the magic and the luck. The face is a mirror of the soul, for better or worse. 'Portraiture is my way of encapsulating and understanding the ongoing museum of human experience, to show who we really are. Mr McDougall said he's able to feel a certain kind of magic by using charcoal and blades to cut into paper . Mr McDougall talks about an 'intimacy deficit' on his blog after describing the 'removal of my natural parents' Mr McDougall talks about an 'intimacy deficit' on his blog after describing the 'removal of my natural parents' Each portrait is a study into the personality of the subject which ultimately links to the timeline of mortality, says Mr McDougall . Mr McDougall, 50, learned to draw as a child after being forced in and out of hospital with a blood disease. He used the countless hours spent in hospital wards to sketch drawings of his surroundings. Born in Blackpool, Mr McDougall moved to Glasgow with his father at the age of five after his parents decided to separate. His mother suffered 'acute' post natal depression shortly after giving birth. The artist said: 'I was never to bond with her.' Soon after moving to Glasgow his father's business spread nationwide, and so he was passed on to close relatives to be looked after as his father had to travel the country for work. Waking the gods: McDougall said at times he feels as though he is waking the gods in his old fashioned style of art which resembles that of cavemen at times . It has been suggested that Mr McDougall's troubled childhood has inspired some of the darker elements to his work . 'i was never to have a bond with her':Mr McDougall's mother suffered acute post natal depression shortly after giving birth to him . According to Mr McDougall, each portrait is a path through the personality of the chosen study that 'links to the timeline of mortality itself.' 'Each piece is like an oracle of thought, a kaleidoscopic journey into a past, present and future. I feel it's honouring the tradition of drawing, bringing those early cave paintings or hieroglyphics into a modern synthesis. 'At times this work almost makes me feel like I'm personally waking the gods, and they really do have to virtually be brought into a breathing reality.' The artist's depiction of grey hair and aging skin seen throughout the collection of portraits is particularly striking . 'This is why I tend to push for a hyper-real result, and by using certain tools like Stanley and scalpel blades for sculpting/texture and highlighting, it helps create a kind of 'trompe l'oeil' illusion of form. 'For me the medium of Charcoal holds a double headed dynamic. 'It packs an old world feel to it that allows me to plug in and play with the terms of its historical theatrical elements, or ghosts of the past. 'It also provides a stunning foundation and plenty of room for the contemporary immediacy of it all. 'When I'm in the zone it's like having a black key to my own time machine. I reckon this must make me a charcoal obsessive compulsive adventurer' Douglas McDougall, pictured with one of his lifelike portraits, describes himself as a 'charcoal obsessive compulsive adventurer'
Douglas McDougall from Glasgow created the drawings of good friends and people who he would features good friends of the artist and people he would like to get to know better . Mr McDougall and the luck. The face is a mirror of the soul, for better or worse. 'Portraiture is my way of portraits, describes himself as a 'charcoal