Artist carves tiny pop culture icons in crayons

This out-of-the-box artist creates tiny pop culture icons from crayons.

Artist Hoang Tran carves amazingly detailed busts of pop-culture figures with crayons. He adds colored wax to help the tiny figures spring to life.

Tran, who is based in Pittsburgh, originally began to study dentistry, but found he needed a creative outlet.

"I withdrew to pursue something more creative," Tran wrote on Instagram. "I had seen someone else's crayon carvings years before, and they stuck in my mind."

Adults and child alike celebrate National Crayon Day on March 31. For Tran, working with crayons, is something he loves to do.

"It turns out I really, really enjoy this work," Tran says. "Now that I'm selling pieces online, showing in art galleries, even doing commissions for people, I guess other people really enjoy them, too."

See more of Hoang's work on Instagram at @mumblestohimself

Editor's note: This story was originally published for National Crayon Day in 2017.