Artist Creates Unique Portrait of Tom Daley to Combat Hate

British artist Conor Collins has found a way to transform hateful words into something beautiful.

The 24-year-old recently revealed this captivating portrait of English Olympic diver Tom Daley, composed entirely of anti-gay tweets directed at the athlete after he announced last year that he was gay.

Daley came out in a YouTube video this past December, revealing that he was in a relationship with a man. He hesitated using the word "gay" until earlier this month when he said, "I am a gay man now" during a television appearance.

Daley's coming out was met with support -- as well as hate. The diver was bombarded with countless homophobic tweets and messages about his sexuality. Collins decided to use these horrible comments in his art to make a bigger statement.

"When I was younger, I was closeted about my homosexuality," Collins tells the Good News blog. "Looking back now, I hate that I felt I needed to do that. In my school there were a couple of out gay boys (both now close friends of mine) who were bullied so heavily, it still haunts them now, and they often just flat out refused to go to school."

"When homophobic tweets started being sent to Tom Daley, it hit a nerve for me," he continues. "It's true that they weren't directed to me, but in a way they might as well have been. If someone expresses hate for Tom Daley falling for someone of the same sex, then they do it for everyone who does that."

"What I wanted to show is that was that there is a person involved. A real human being," he says. "The abuse sent to Tom was being sent to a real human being with thoughts, feelings, fears, hopes and dreams. Often when something is said over the Internet from someone, perhaps hundreds of miles away, it can feel as though it wont affect them. Speech may be free, but it can carry a heavy price."

Collins has received positive feedback on his piece and has even heard from Daley! "He likes it, which is really flattering as he himself is the inspiration," says the artist.

This talented young man has created unique portraits of famous figures before; his Salvador Dali was made by using only black thread, while his portrait of Jack Nicholson was constructed with coffee beans. One of his own abstract self-portraits is made entirely of words in his artist's bio on his website.

See more of Collins' impressive work by checking out his website or by following him on Twitter.