Devon Rodriguez
Social media sensation Devon Rodriguez makes most of his hyperrealist oil paintings on the New York City subway, furtively painting intimate portraits of unsuspecting straphangers. In 2020, Rodriguez began posting timelapses of his process on TikTok, each video ending with him surprising his subjects with his art. A year later, he made his auction debut with Girl on Subway (2021), which sold for $22,680 —more than three times its high estimate. Rodriguez also became the most-followed visual artist on TikTok with more than 17 million followers; on Instagram, he boasted more than two million fans. While Rodriguez creates self-portraits and larger portraits of friends, executed on a proper easel, he is best known for his depictions of everyday people encountered on their daily commutes.
