Art cannot be confined to any one medium. It doesn't even need to be on paper! People have been using bodies as canvases for millennia. From traditional art to new and innovative techniques, let’s explore art and the human body.
Tattoos are a common form of body art all around the world. For many people, tattoos are a way to express personal style. Some people design tattoos because they want a permanent reminder on their body of something important. Perhaps the tattoo is a tribute to a close friend who passed away, or a phrase that provides guidance and strength.
Many artists have their own tattoo parlours where they help clients choose the perfect tattoo for their body. These artists have a portfolio of their past work, so that the clients can get to know the artists’ work better. The decision to get a tattoo should not be taken lightly. These tattoos are inked into the skin with sterilized needles.
Most tattoos, apart from some temporary ones, are permanent and last throughout your whole life. Over time, colours and lines on tattoos can fade or blur, but the tattoo won’t disappear. The clinical process of getting a tattoo removed, while sometimes possible, is extremely painful and expensive. Better think hard about that design before you get it tattooed onto your arm.
If you're not sure that you want a pattern tattooed onto you permanently, you might want to consider henna. Henna is the art of creating temporary tattoos using dye prepared from the henna plant. This artform has been used since antiquity to dye skin, hair and fingernails for thousands of years.
Today, henna is used by many people around the world for cosmetic and ceremonial purposes. In several parts of the world, henna is an important part of celebrations like weddings.
To make a henna tattoo, the artist makes a design using a henna pulp and leaves it on the skin to dry. Once the pulp dries, it hardens and flakes off. What is left is a beautiful light brown stain in the pattern that the artist created. Depending on the type of henna used, these tattoos can last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. All henna disappears completely after a while.
Some artists give new meaning to the term body art. Guido Daniele is a successful artist who has built an impressive portfolio of art painted on hands. Daniele specializes in creating life-like images using only paint on human hands. He has created incredible images of animals, buildings and beautiful structures.
Some of his creations involve a number of hands working together to make a whole image or scene. Sometimes, it's hard to remember that you're just looking at a pair of hands. Daniele enjoys designing and assembling fine art on human hands, but has also been commissioned to create body art pieces for advertisements.
Guido Daniele doesn't just paint hands. He is also a hyperrealistic artist. He has played a part in testing out new ways to create art, including using airbrushing techniques. Daniele has also created movie backdrops and optical illusions for buildings.
If painting hands isn't hard enough, take a look at what Liu Bolin does with his art. Liu Bolin is a unique and gifted artist, but unless you're looking hard, you might just miss him altogether. After all, he is an expert in being invisible!
Liu Bolin spends hours painting his whole body, including his clothes, so that he can blend in perfectly with surroundings. It takes a lot of talent, attention and patience to get the colours and shades just right. Sometimes, it's truly difficult to see him.
Naptime for infants isn't just for resting. Queenie Liao is a other and photographer who transforms her infant's nursery into fantastical adventures. Using just clothes, cloth, stuffed animals, and other common household items, she brings a sense of adventure to her sleeping baby.
Her works include photos of her baby climbing a ladder to collect the night's twinkling stars and flying to a castle above the clouds, just to name a couple. After assembling the elaborate nursery scenes, Liao uses photography to capture the final images. That’s pretty eat!