KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF
Art has long been used for activism and lobbying. Wall art, for example, played an important role in the anti-war protests in Vietnam. The famous painter Banksy has often used his art to rant against injustice and call for unrest. Diego Riveria painted large murals on public walls to protest against injustice.
In this photo, Dain Yoon uses the method of art to bring attention to the horrors of domestic violence and abuse. In America, one in four women and one in seven men report violence at the hands of their partner. Domestic violence is widespread in both developing and developed countries and must be addressed through strong laws.
CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE
Russian artist Ellen Sheidlin has amassed millions of followers on Instagram with her amazingly surreal photos. She uses body paint, props, and good old Photoshop to make her images attractive to her large fan base. In the image above, she turns her face upside down by painting a nose and lips on her forehead.
As you can see, the two women are making eye contact with their faces turned upside down while facing each other slightly, seemingly trying to communicate with each other. This could have a deeper meaning; it may even be inspired by the upside-down smiley emoji that is often used to convey silliness or sarcasm.
THE GRINCH
The Grinch is based on the book by Dr. Seuss, a character brought to life on the big screen by the wonderful work of Jim Carrey. This woman also does an excellent job of recreating the look. For the movie “The Grinch” Carrey needed special training from the CIA to play the role.
He had to wear the costume for a total of 92 days during the year-long shoot. The constant transformation into the character was too much for Carrey, who struggled with the process. A CIA specialist met with him for a weekend to teach him distraction techniques to calm him down during the transformation.
THE FLAMINGO DANCE
Another body painting enthusiast has decided to turn into a bird. This time the choice has fallen on the flamingo. The flamingo is instantly recognizable by its pink feathers and its pose standing on one leg. Flamingos get their color from their diet: pink comes from the carotenoids in the crustaceans they eat.
Many scientists have long thought about the strange posture of the pink bird. They have come to the conclusion that standing on one leg uses less muscle power. It also helps the birds retain body heat. If you ever see a group of flamingos together, it helps to know that they are called flamingos.
THE PHOENIX IS BORN AGAIN AND AGAIN
Artist KayPike uses body paint to bring to life her vision of Jean Grey, also known as Dark Phoenix, from the “X-Men” comics. She is a mutant with the ability to use her powers of telekinesis and telepathy. Her Phoenix ability, the manifestation of a cosmic entity, allows her to cause mass destruction and alter reality.
Pike has earned the nickname “The Body Painter” for her transformations, which she often shows on Twitch. It takes her about 11 to 12 hours to get the whole look done. The cosplayer chose her costume from her time as a member of the Gold Team. At that time it was under the leadership of Storm, a weather-controlling mutant.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
Someone might look at this design and claim that it is simpler than all the more complex images in this article. However, it would be wrong to assume that. Just because something looks simple and requires fewer colors doesn’t mean it doesn’t take effort. A trained eye will be able to see the clean and neat lines and curves of the design.
It looks like this woman was first painted completely black and the pattern was created by removing the color from the woman’s skin so her natural complexion shows through. Her natural beige skin tone contrasts with the black color.
STRIP
Gesine Marwedel is the painter behind these beautiful portraits. She is a German painter who started out on canvas, painting a face when her friend, photographer Thomas van de Wall, encouraged her to do so. This led her to explore body painting, using the lithe bodies of her dancer friends as canvases. She says her work can take up to 12 hours.
When she talks about her inspiration, she says that sometimes she can’t tell where the ideas come from. But when she gets paid, the client usually decides what she will paint. She also gets inspiration from the scenes around her.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC
This is a tribute to the musical melodies that fill our lives with joy. Her theme is music, which is why the notes are painted on her neck. The earrings have also been made of glittery material in the design of the musical notes.
This woman also has cutouts of records across her body and in her hair. Records or vinyl albums were used to record and distribute the music of favorite artists before cassettes and CDs took over. Also painted on her chest is a large musical instrument whose keys are made of parts glued to her body. We can feel the beat in this picture.
THE EYE OF THE TIGER
This woman has decorated her body to look like a tiger. With this look she would surely win at Halloween contests. She managed to capture all the colors – orange, white and black – of the tiger’s fur and blend them seamlessly with great precision to create a realistic pattern on her skin.
She also went all out with her face, using black paint to define her eyes and lips. And for the final touch, she photoshopped herself into the orange savannah landscape. However, tigers also exist in the jungle, especially in India, so the background could have been different.
IF I HAD YOUR FACE
At first glance, this creation by Dain Yoon looks like it could be inspired by the opening credits of the sitcom “Brady Bunch.” But the closer you look at it, the more you realize that there are signs of something more profound. Her face is divided into nine quadrants, and in each quadrant she has painted a different expression.
These faces represent the emotions women have to deal with when they try to be part of a society that doesn’t do them justice. Besides the face painting, we also want to draw attention to Yoon’s stylish clothes in this photo; her red scarf and coat make the whole look perfect.