Urban jungles like Manhattan are a nightmare for those with a poor sense of direction. But for artist Stephen Wiltshire they’re inspiring. In fact, with Wiltshire’s extreme powers of retention, he could probably draw you a map.
Based in Britain, the virtuoso sketch artist has an extraordinary talent for accurately drawing some of the biggest cities in the world.
Diagnosed with autism when he was three years old, Wiltshire can pencil in the minute details of an entire metropolis after only a brief study of his subject city. In some cases, he has created panorama sketches after flying above a location in a helicopter.
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So far, his memory skills have seen him produce incredible illustrations of London, New York, Sydney, Toronto, and Mexico City.
Footage of the ‘cityscape savant’ by Great Big Story puts Wiltshire’s almost superhuman abilities into sharp perspective, showing how he intricately draws sprawling urban landscapes to scale without using any picture or scene for reference.
New York City is reportedly his favorite to draw, what with towering structures like the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty.
Last month, Wiltshire even ditched the pencil to take his art to the virtual world. Using Google’s Tilt Brush 3D he reproduced a ‘painting’ of the new Nissan Micra.