One of my favorite blogs, Honestly WTF, recently posted about Peruvian artist Cecilia Paredes. With the help of her assistants and the magic of make-up and costume, Paredes blends (almost) seamlessly into vividly colored and patterned wallpaper backgrounds.

Paredes acts as both the subject and photographer of her works. She describes the illusion of disappearing into the landscape as a way of blending, belonging. According to the artist, the theme is, "re-location after displacement and migration and how one has to adjust in order to belong. Tough it is, but it has to be done, without forgetting our origin."

MyModernMet.com aptly states that, "the intricate backgrounds add an interesting and complicated dynamic to these pieces. While in some cases the photographer is turned away from the camera, her carefully chosen pose adds drama to the piece, in others we can see the whites of her eyes, giving us that haunting feeling of discovering something we shouldn't." Paredes has also left her hair unpainted, perhaps allowing the viewer to identify with the feeling of being out of place, yet trying to adapt.

A few of the backgrounds Paredes uses are very reminiscent of classic designs by Josef Frank and William Morris.

images by Cecilia Paredes via Honestly WTF and MyModernMet