Swedish-based photographer & digital manipulator Erik Johansson cites painters Dali, Magritte, as well as Escher and Rob Gonsalves as his sources of inspiration, and the inspiration is evident. However Erik puts his own unique angle on abstract art – and accomplishes it seamlessly. Erik pulls it off so perfectly, the only thing standing in the way of their believability is common sense.

Every so often, a game or movie comes along that defines where future perceptions of the genre will go. Pixellica has showcased, for example, interpretations of Blade Runner-esque environments as seen through the eyes of various artists. Today, we offer gaming environments that we really, really wish would make it to the Big Time. Gaming environments that make you drop the controller and shout “I’m there!”

Pixellica presents a selection of astounding Photoshop illustrations that play on both darkness and light. Created by Javier, AKA PoisonVectors, these illustrations capture everything we love about Photoshop: Smoke, light, swirls, dark blending, and the people who are always at the center – though they always bear some resemblance to each other – who seem so oblivious to where they are but nonetheless so utterly captured by the the very illustration they inhabit.

Ever since the dystopian vision was created in 1982 by Ridley Scott’s “Blade Runner”, the way conceptual artists see the future has changed. From Blade Runner to Brazil, The Fifth Element to Minority Report (heck, even Mystery Men), conceptual artists have portrayed the future as a place of ginormous cities, flying cars and grungy, rainy street life. Pixellica presents an excellent sampling of dystopian concepts to stir the muse.

Kenneth Fairclough is a 20-year-old Conceptual Artist in the United States. His illustrations range from highly detailed digital paintings to macabre, sinister sketches. Find more of Kenneth’s work on DeviantArt.

Knavish is a 23 year old Photoshop artist with a gallery hosted on Deviant Art – his work ranges from macabre to experimental to surreal.