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Enormous Athletes Loom Over Rio In Awe-Inspiring Art Installations

These huge figures look like they're flying through the sky.
JR

Those traveling to Rio de Janeiro for the Olympics will want to make sure to look up.

And not just because of the city’s iconic “Christ the Redeemer” statue — but because French artist JR has just completed two amazing installations of enormous athletic figures that appear to float over buildings. The sculptures are made out of an image canvased onto scaffolding.

The artist — who recently made headlines for an optical illusion that appeared to make the Louvre in Paris disappear — identified one piece in the center of Rio as depicting a high jump performed by Mohamed Younes Idriss of Sudan.

“He missed out on qualification for the 2016 Rio Olympics but he is there some how :),” JR wrote.

A second enormous figure, which Design Boom reports is located in the city’s Barra neighborhood, appears to show a person diving into the ocean.

These pieces definitely deserve a gold medal.

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