Artist Matthew Albanese creates amazing miniature landscapes made from sugar, chocolate and even bits of ostrich in his living room. All the models were painstakingly recreated in his living room, which he uses as his studio. Each gruelling piece can take up to as many as 700 hours to complete. Photo: A stormy version of “New Life 2” created by Matthew Albanese. (Photo by Matthew Albanese/Barcroft Media)

Members of the Oath Keepers and general public return fire during a simulated attack as they take part in a tactical training session in northern Idaho, U.S. October 1, 2016. In April 2015 Reuters photographer Jim Urquhart was assigned to cover the Oath Keepers during a tour of the Sugar Pine gold mine in Oregon after the group of former cops, military, firefighters and other first responders had risen to prominence during a standoff in Nevada over land rights. (Photo by Jim Urquhart/Reuters)

A cat dressed in a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt takes part in a parade in Kiev, Ukraine on May 28, 2016. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

A cat wering glasses lies in a pet dryer at the “Pet Expo Championship” in Bangkok, Thailand on August 30, 2019. (Photo by Mladen Antonov/AFP Photo)

An Iraqi boy sits next to cats for sale at the Ghazl Market in central Baghdad on November 20, 2020. (Photo by Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP Photo)

MY Raven, a former steamer now converted to diesel, cruises across Ullswater from Glenridding to Pooley Bridge in Cumbria, UK on October 25, 2024. (Photo by Andrew McCaren/London News Pictures)

“I was born in the United States in 1985. As early as I can remember I’ve been a “doodler”. From even the early days I’ve always loved strange, offbeat, beautiful, and slightly melancholy things. Something about the mixed grabbed me. My love for sketching carried on throughout my high school days. Which is when I took a small class on watercolor. Watercolor is what birthed my passion for mixing colors and how a color can tell a story. In year 2009 I discovered digital painting and my new found passion for the medium. It’s been the favored medium for the past years since. I’ve used online tutorials and videos to help me learn along the way and then in late 2011 I took a workshop called Becoming a Better Artist. The beginning of 2013 I won a class from The Art Department which will start this spring.”