Artist turns human body into canvas to create amazing parrot illusion

It looks like a simple painting of a parrot perched on a tree stump, but take a closer look and a whole different story begins to emerge.

The figure atop the log is in fact a female model who has posed for body-painting supremo Johannes Stoetter.

A former body-painting world champion, the Italian artist takes his inspiration from the natural world and has gained a reputation for creating eye-bending masterpieces.

His latest work is this intricate design that is so lifelike it is often mistaken for a real parrot.

Johannes spent weeks painstakingly working out how he could transform the female model into the colourful bird and took a further four hours to paint her using breathable ink.

The model’s legs portray the bird’s wing and tail feathers while her arm wrapped around her neck forms the parrot’s head and beak.

‘I couldn’t imagine that there would be a way to earn money with body-painting,’ explained Stoetter, who has been creating body art since the year 2000.

‘But nevertheless I was totally convinced that I wanted to do it – I felt that it was my way.’