Oil be damned! It's the iPad Van Gogh. The finger-painting Realist portraits that are often mistaken for photographs

Using the ArtRage app, artist David Kassan has set aside the oils and canvas and embraced a whole new method of painting

Images 1-3 show how artist David Kassan sketches out the structure of the model's face using broad 'brushstrokes'

Kassan begins to add detail to the face in images 4-6, and then gradually builds up the expressive elements of the portrait (7-12) with painterly flourishes from the ArtRage app's tool palette

When it launched, the iPad was instantly beloved of trendsetters and arty types around the world.

So perhaps it's no surprise that artists such as New Yorker David Kassan have started to use it to create and display their work.

Using the ArtRage app, Kassan, whose Realist portraits are often mistaken for photographs, has set aside the oils and canvas and embraced a whole new method of painting.

As you can see, the process and the end results are incredibly similar, building up layers of colour over approximately four hours.

Painting with just your finger has its benefits - no mess and, of course, the invaluable ability to effortlessly correct a mistake or undo the last stroke.

But, says Kassan, it can never replace 'real' painting: 'There are a number of concept painters who only paint using digital tools, and they make some really amazing work. But I think I'd miss the tactile feel of an oil painting and its luminosity too much to go completely digital.'

davidkassan.com

JASMINECOMMERCE.COM/ARTRAGE.COM

A model (right) sits for David Kassan (left) - just like a subject would traditionally sit for a portrait painter - who then uses his iPad as his 'canvas' and his finger as his 'brush'