Fairytale Urban Art Spotted in the Ukraine

It’s amazing how many incredible artistic wonders go unnoticed, simply because they’re so well hidden that no one knows about them.

This particular artwork is set up at the 13th floor of an Ukrainian apartment building, in Kiev. It’s really hard to describe, and even looking at the amazing photos below, it’s hard to understand the meaning of this installation. The man who took the photos described it as the entrance to a fairytale land, that made him feel like he didn’t belong there. So he just quickly took some photos and quickly got out of there.

To protect the tenants of this Kiev building from some unwanted attention, the photograph didn’t reveal the address of this abstract masterpiece. Intricate colorful moulds cover the walls of this 13th floor, from floor to ceiling, and  the light coming from the ceiling windows creates a truly fantastic atmosphere.

via holy-mozart

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Dictator Toddlers Show the Evil in All of Us

Danish artist Nina Maria Kleivan replaced her new-born daughter’s baby clothes with uniforms of known dictators .

No, Ms. Kleivan is not a fan of dictatorship, she just used this opportunity to show that evil is present in all of us, no matter how innocent we may look. The idea for this unusual art project came to Nina after she suffered some complications from her pregnancy,and was forced to spend some time at home.

Away from her art studio, the artist chose her young daughter, Faustina, as a canvas. Looking at her, Nina started contemplating on the idea that each human being starts with a clean slate and has the opportunity to do good or bad, in life. “Even my daughter could end up ruling Denmark with an iron fist. The possibility is still there,” she says.

Like the Childzilla series, Potency may be comical, but it’s meant to have people ponder on where evil comes from. Read More »

Death Star Watermelon and Cantaloupe

They say you shouldn’t play with your food, but when something as awesome as the Death Star is involved, rules don’t really apply. And plus, it’s food art!

The Death Star cantaloupe isn’t very new, It was showcased for the first time in 2008, on the Evil Scientist blog, together with hints on how to make your own. Apparently, all you need is the cantaloupe, a pen knife and five minutes. Placed against the right background, the Death Star cantaloupe looks just as deadly as the real thing, but it’s much tastier.

The Death Star watermelon needs a bit more carving, because it doesn’t have the texture advantages of the cantaloupe, but the end result is even more impressive, and just as tasty. Unfortunately, both organic Death Stars are very vulnerable, even without that damned exhaust port.

via Kuriositas

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Mallakhamb – Extreme Indian Pole Dancing

Modern pole-dancing may be attractive to look-at, but in terms of difficulty, it’s nothing to the old Indian sport of Mallakhamb.

Mallakhamb originated in Maharastra, India, during the 12th century, as a form of training for wrestlers. The word “Malla” means wrestler, while “khamb” translates as pole. This old art had almost been lost throughout the centuries, but it’s become increasingly popular, in recent years, mainly due to the efforts of coaches like Uday Deshpande.

The sport of Mallkhamb has athletes climb up a wooden pole, 55 cm in diameter,at the base, and 35, at the top, and perform various poses and feats. The pole is most often made of teak, because of its sturdiness, and before exercises begin, it’s rubbed with castor oil, to prevent friction.

Even though Mallakhamb is yet to be recognized as an official sport, in India, it has been embraced by visually-impaired boys. This art is about feeling and understanding the strength and balance of one’s body, and that’s why blind Mallakhamb athletes are just as good as those with perfect eyesight.

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Pilobolus Dance Theatre Becomes Human Alphabet

By twisting their bodies into impossible positions, the members of the Pilobolus Dance Theater have recreated 26 letters of the alphabet.

To immortalize their efforts, the Pilobolus recruited photographer John Kane, who used secrets of the trade to make the human letters look amazing. The magic happened in John’s studio, in Connecticut, over a period of four days. According to the six highly trained contortionists that took part in the project, the hardest letters were “C” and “R”. Although they wouldn’t reveal the secret behind how they pulled it off, John and the dancers swear no Photoshop was used. The same thing can’t be said abut the Yoga Dogs calendar.

The human alphabet photos, taken by John Kane, were used in a book aimed at children and adults alike. Called “Pilobolus – The Human Alphabet” this collection of human letters aims to show off the theater’s talent and inspire young dancers.

Photos by JOHN KANE/BARCROFT MEDIA via Daily Mail

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Bald Artist Uses His Head as a Canvas

Phillip Levine began noticing a receding hairline, in his early twenties, and instead of wearing a wig or getting implants, he decided to use his head in the name of art.

With the help of talented body-painter, Kat Sinclair, the British artist immortalizes his designs, on the top of his bald head. “Unlike a wig where you are hiding what maybe seen as a deformity what I do is tell people feel special, original and embrace what could be looked at as a weakness and turn it into a strength.”

28-year-old Phillip Levine and Kat Sinclair often spend up to 4 hours working on a single head painting. One of the most memorable pieces had Phillip carry 1,000 Swarowski crystals glued to his head.

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The Mysterious Midnight Knitter of New Jersey

The small town of Cape West May, New Jersey is currently being “terrorized” by a group of “despicable” people who wrap trees, stop signs and even lamp posts in knitted covers.

You can clearly understand why the local authorities want them brought to justice, right? Of course you can’t, but they do offer a useful explanation: “It’s bright, it’s pretty … but in a community and in law your rules have to be consistent.” In other words, they want the people behind the Mystery Knitter project to come clean. But without the mystery, would something like this even be worth mentioning?

Signs of the Midnight Knitter first appeared in Cape West May, a few months ago, and since then more and more knitted covers keep showing up, over the cover of darkness. No one know who’s responsible for all this, but pretty much everyone loves their work (except authorities, of course).

One of the Midnight Knitter members told the Daily News a trio of knitters is knitting donated yarn and placing their work around the city, at night. He described their work as a form of graffiti, without the destructive effect. And everyone agrees it’s a lot better than someone spray-painting their walls.

via PressOfAtlanticCity

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The Key Sculpture of Prague

Designed and built by Jili David, voted the most influential Czech artist of the last 20 years, this impressive work of art was unveiled on March 9, in the Franz Kafka Square of Prague.

Made using 85,741 metal keys, the sculpture symbolizes the 20 years that have passed since the Velvet Revolution. Keys were picked as the main theme because jangling keys were the symbol of pro-democratic rallies, organized by Vaclav Havel, in 1989.

The 6-meter-tall artistic construction spells the  word “Revoluce” (Revolution) with the lower letters considerably distorted. There has been some controversy regarding Jili David’s key sculpture, because the work was commissioned by international telecommunications company, Vodafone, who also collected the keys. Money from an international company, for a national symbol raised some questions in the Czech Republic.

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Willow Is the New Wood of the Coffin Business

A 200-year old willow processing company has recently targeted the coffin business, and apparently had great success.

P H Coate & Son’s English Willow Coffins, from Somerset, England,  has started offering dead people an alternative to traditional wooden coffins. Some individuals are just bored by the same old wooden coffins, as if they died and have been buried in them too many times. Anyway, John Parfitt and company say willow is the more popular pick these days, because of it alluring aesthetics (cough!) and environmental reasons.

Willow coffins are hand-crafted by skilled willow basket masters (that explains why they look more like coffin-shaped baskets), using a traditional method, and clients have a selection to pick from. Environmentalist are going to go mad for these babies, but what about those artistic wooden coffins from Ghana, what happens to them?

Photos by Matt Cardy/Getty Images Europe via Zimbio

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Chinese Artist Makes World’s Thinnest Ceramic Bowl

Huang Cheng-nan, a ceramic master from China, has created a series of beautiful ceramic bowls, thinner than China’s Jingdae bowl, the thinnest ceramic in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records.

Huang Cheng-nan’s ceramic bowls range from 12 cm to 20 cm in diameter, weigh between 4 and 8 grams, and are between 0.15 and 0.18 mm thick. His works are so light they can easily be supported by a cobweb. These fragile works of art are on display in Taipei, and will soon be acknowledged as the thinnest ceramic bowls on Earth.

Photos by REUTERS via Daylife

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The Tampon Chandelier of Joana Vasconcelos

Named “A Noiva”, which translates as The Bride, the 5-meter-high tampon chandelier is one of the main exhibits at Joana Vasconcelos’ “Netless” exhibition, in Lisbon.

If you’re unfamiliar with Joana Vasconcelos, she’s the artist behind the amazing stainless pot shoes installation that we featured a while back. “The Bride” is one of her most original artworks, made up of over 14,000 tampons, wire and cotton thread.

There’s nothing peculiar about Joana Vasconcelos’ chandelier, if seen from a distance, but as you approach you begin to make out the strange materials she used. Right now, the tampon chandelier is only soaking up the gazes of art lovers, and will continue to do so until the Belem Cultural Center exhibition ends, on May 18, 2010.

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Dream Anatomy – Wear Your Inside on the Outside

Through her “Dream Anatomy” collection, artist Rachel Wright give anyone the chance to explore the realms of human anatomy, as they walk on the streets. She uses private clothing items like women’s slips and nighties, and transforms them into dresses meant to be worn outside.

Her Dream Anatomy models include “diafragma, pneuma, circulation or sacrum (sacred bone)”. Check out the whole anatomical collection on Rachel’s website and stop by her Etsy shop, if you want to buy some of her creations.

via StreetAnatomy

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The Rubbery Mutants of Ji Yong Ho

Korean art Ji Yong Ho uses pieces of used tire to create rubbery artworks he refers to as mutants.

You’ve definitely seen tire sculptures before, and I posted some cool photos, a while back, but now, I can finally associate these recycled masterpieces with a name. And that name is Ji Yong Ho, a talented artists who likes to show the material’s possible mutations.

Ji Yong Ho wants to show tires, which are made from natural rubber liquids, pass through several stages, but can also be reborn as a whole new other form of life. His new creations are mutants of the original rubber. His works vary from an 11-inch-tall dog to a 10-foot long shark.

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Human Ivory Jewelry Is Pretty Original

Rachel Betty Case uses finger and toe nail clippings to create cool jewelry she refers to as Human Ivory.

The artist acknowledges nails are neither bones nor teeth, but that hasn’t stopped her from comparing them to precious ivory. She uses clipped nails, resin and amber to create bizarre unisex jewelry that make perfect gifts for offbeat people.

Rachel doesn’t claim her artworks are made of real ivory, she uses the term Human Ivory, because she gets her main material (nails) from humans, and her designs have an ivory color. You can check out the rest of her works by visiting her Etsy shop or by going t her appropriately named website, ThatWomanMakesCrazyArt.com. Keep in mind you can send her your own nails, if you want to.

via StreetAnatomy

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Best Food Cakes EVER

You’ve probably seen cool cakes before, but as far as cakes-shaped-like-other-foods go, these are by far the most awesome I’ve ever seen.

Debbie Goard has almost 20 years of decorating behind her, and it’s this vast experience that helps her design the most incredible cakes most of us have ever seen. She does all kinds of designs, but I was particularly impressed by her food cakes that look just like the dishes they’re trying to mimic.

The perfect steak you see below is just one of the sweet wonders Debbie has created over the years, but there are other jaw-dropping masterpieces, including that awesome slab of bacon. That thing should be framed and posted on a wall of fame, or something.

Check out more of Debbie’s cakes on her Flickr profile and feel free to read more about her work, and even order cakes and cupcakes from on delicious-looking website.

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