Cardoso used to work at an independent toy and sculpture manufacturer, where he was a character designer. He told INSIDER this portrait series is a way to "create odd creatures without the mess."
At first Cardoso tried digitally playing with grotesque images of human skin, tissues, and fluids that he found on the web, but the results weren't coming together the right way.
Eventually he went to a nearby store and picked up some Play-Doh, which gave him the control that he needed.
Cardoso says he's been inspired by the strange works of David Lynch, David Cronenberg, and Chris Cunningham. He appreciates practical effects, and although Photoshop is a major part of his process, that appreciation shows.
The photos have garnered a lot of attention since the project started.
People are very curious about this kind of stuff," he explained. "Perhaps it makes them feel better about the way they look? I don't really know how to answer to this.
While the response to the series has been largely positive, there are critics. Cardoso said that "a lot of people are finding them very offensive or pointless."
Cardoso's work explores themes about representation on social media, self image, and plastic surgery.
He's been overrun with people requesting that they be turned into the next Play-Doh monster.
"Some people say 'Can you please take my photo? I'm so glad my real face is not going to be there!'" he told INSIDER.
"This is amazing because we live in a 'selfie era.' Some could say this is a narcissistic era powered by the social media, but it seems that there's also room for people who are glad to show their smashed face with almost no identity," he continued.
What are they showing, actually?
Cardoso is making these portraits for free in his spare time, but he doesn't have much of it.
I can't spend that much time taking photos of everyone," he said. "I mean, I wish I could do that, of course. But I still have to work 12 hours a day to pay the bills.
