A Nigeria-based artist named Eli Waduba put a wish of his into the universe, and it came came true much quicker than he expected.
Waduba — who’s 26 and began drawing at age 9 — is among a growing community of hyperrealist artists in Nigeria, and he rendered a drawing that is identical to a photo of Kevin Hart, whom he described as his favorite comedian. The image shows Hart wearing glasses while cracking a smile, and it was all drawn in pencil.
Kevin Hart, Nigerian artist Eli Waduba. (Photos: Instagram, Twitter)
The young artist then tweeted the photo on Feb. 25 that he hoped would eventually reach the “Night School” actor.
“My name is Eli Waduba Yusuf Am a Nigerian, based in kaduna. Am a hyperrealism PENCIL Artist, I hope to become like @Harinzeyart. Please Retweet, let @KevinHart4real see it, thank you,” he wrote.
And just two days later, Hart not only responded, but he wanted to buy the drawing, plus three more.
“I see it and I want to purchase it,” wrote Hart. “I also want to support you and your amazing talent by giving you a fee to do a pencil drawing of 3 of my celebrity friends that I can gift it to. DM your info and let’s get to work!”
The pencil artist spoke with CNN afterward, and said he was extremely surprised that it took such a short time for Hart to see the drawing, although he had faith.
“I hoped he would see it and actually believed he would see it someday,” he explained. “But I did not know it would happen so fast. It has been so overwhelming and words cannot describe it. Kevin Hart has always been my favorite comedian. We have started the process [of selling the portraits].”
In his Feb. 25 tweet, Waduba mentioned that he wants to one day be like Nigerian hyperrealist artist Arinze Stanley, who spoke about the Hart drawing. Stanley also said he plans to set up a meeting with Waduba to see if he can assist him in anyway.
“I feel so graced to be able to inspire someone somewhere out there,” Stanley told ABC News. “To see people win is the ultimate deal in life, you don’t get a better feeling than that.”
