We went to see Stockholm Body Painting Contest the 18th of October 2008 – Sweden’s first contest with international competitors and our very first Body Painting event ever!
Needless to say, we were very excited to find such an opportunity to see something so unusual, something we never had seen before.
The contest was initiated and arranged by the manager of Make Up Institute in Stockholm together with The World Body Painting Association.
The contest’s theme was “Human and Nature in Frame”, with both airbrush and brush / sponge body painting techniques competing with each other for the first price: €1000 of Mist Stockholm products.
There were twenty international and professional bodypainters from countries such as Sweden, Finland Holland, Germany, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Bulgaria, Poland, Israel among others. I don’t even remember, there were so many!
I remember though that both the ruling World Champions in brush /sponge and airbrush technique were participating. This was a contest with high class indeed.
With the thought of that the painting started at 9 o’clock in the morning (!) and should be ready for judgement at 3 in the afternoon, I’m really impressed by the painters and the models stamina as well as the amazing results!
The jury must have had a very tough job, because there were so many amazing body paintings to choose between.
I’ll start with telling you who came at third place: the Swedish Team Jarl, ruling World Champions 2008 in the Seeboden Body Painting Festival in the brush / sponge category.
As some of you might recognize, their bodypainting was inspired by the Scandinavian nature and mythology from other famous painters like John Bauer, Ernst Josephson, Carl Larsson and Staffan Ullstrand (a famous Swedish ethologist).
So many wonderful details, I love the back as well!
At second place came the ruling World Champion in the airbrush category, Alex Hansen from Brazil, ranked 1st in Canada at Color Mundo 2007 and 1st in the World at the World Body Painting Festival 2008.
This bodypainting model were actually the first one I saw when we entered the place and she instantly gave me the visions of a wild creature of the Amazonas. Very fascinating.
Such rich details. I’m so impressed, beyond words. Can’t stop looking at her! (One of my two favorites which I did tip as a winner).
…and the winner was: Australia! (I have no idea what the painters name is… If any one reading this knows, please tell me her name in the comments thank you).
UPDATE: We got the wrong information. The winner was Bella Volen from Austria (born in Bulgaria), sorry for that!
Another amazing bodypainting and I love the birds, but yet, no, this was not the one that I would have chosen as the winner.
My winner would have been this one below, because of the way the painter had chosen to take advantage of the models body, look how one of her breasts are the painted lady’s breast too.
If she did close her eyes, it really looked like she had a fox face and the fox is embracing her. I also love the male figure hanging on her back, entwined by the octopus. Simply brilliant.
It’s never the right one that wins, right? The jury were celebrities, which I never think is a good idea. Better would be to choose a jury of persons with a big knowledge and long experience of the subject – in this case body painting.
Mark Reid from USA was also participating – ranked 3rd in in the World at the World Body Painting Festival 2008. (See my other post with the video where he is painting jeans on a girl).
He was also going to hold a body painting seminar on Monday after the competition, as well as Alex Hansen and the very talented Einat Dan.
I recommend you to read my post Bodypainting Trips Tips about other Bodypainting events around the world to travel to.
You simply MUST see all Lifecruiser Stockholm Body Painting Contest 2008 Photos with the other bodypaintings and close up’s!!!
If you don’t want to see the overview, you can go direct to Lifecruiser Stockholm Body Painting Contest 2008 Photos Slideshow.
Lifecruiser ♥ Bodypainting
Update: You can see one more model being body painted by the Swedish artist Calle Rehbinder at his own blog.
If you wonder over our big copyright watermark, it’s because another blog has been stealing our photos and we want it to clearly show who has the copyrights. Sorry if it disturbs your view of them!
Wow, Australia won! Amazing paint job…very rainforest looking.
I think they’re so clever, but the models have to get top points for their stamina, as you say. Very interesting post.
Puss in Bootss last blog post..A Light and Sound Show
Great pictures, capatin. Really love the wild creature of the Amazonas and the Dodo. This is so much more exciting and fun than watching normal paintings in art galleries.
claudies last blog post..About reasons to practice the scene!
claudies last blog post..About reasons to practice the scene!
Wow those really are something!
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Body painting is a neglectic art.
May be it’s too erotic for many people and cultures, thus misunderstood.
I think it’s fascinating.
Your photo’s is a proof of what I mean.
Who’s next;))
TorAas last blog post..PhotoHunt – October 25 – 2008
What amazing artwork. I love all the wildlife images especially the one with the white tiger. That’d be so cool to see the moving art up close. How beyond cool!
SwordMamas last blog post..Day228-Project365
I was one of the artists at the event. Unfortunately, my model became very tired, so she didn’t participate in the last part, the stage performance. So you have no pictures of her. But you can see some at my blog – http://tantrikblog.wordpress.com/2008/10/19/stockholm-body-painting-contest-2008/
By the way, is there any possibility for me to get any of your pictures without the huge text over them? I have complete respect for copyright and such, being an artist and photographer myself, and I would never publish any other artist’s work without their permission, and of course with a byline.
Warmth welcome to my blog, Calle. What a pity that we missed your body painting! I hope you’ll show us the final result, because it does look wonderful what we can see in your blog.
About your request, nothing is impossible, what do you have in mind more exactly? Maybe we can discuss it.
The reasons for us using the big watermark, is that it’s too easy to steal photos in the internet. This week I discovered another blog using my photos without permission – and it’s no nice blog, with links to things that I don’t want to be connected to.
I’ve enlarged the watermark on those ones, normally I have a smaller and transparent one.
Anyway, nice to see your comment and welcome back any time
A unique way a expressing Ideas. I just don’t know how it feels to be fully covered with painting and yet you know that you are bare
Dexter | Tech At Hand Dot Nets last blog post..Digital Filipino Events
That’s real art and it looks beautiful. The only thing which is disturbing me is the huge “Lifecruiser” you put on your pictures. Why ? are you afraid that they would be copied ? I don’t care if my photos are “stolen” if I put them on a blog they are available to everybody.
I spent saturday and sunday the whole day at our painting exposition, we had a lot of people ! Two journalists and photographers and of course the important city people, was really nice ! Will post it during the week.
Gattinas last blog post..
yeah, noticed the watermark but still great pics and colorful ones too. wish i was there
This is really impressive. I would have gone nuts if I was there – and now I am since you’ve described it so well in every details and with wonderful pics.
I don’t disagree with your fave, but I loved the first one too – then again: I’m a Scandinavian.
Hope there will be a Oslo Body Painting Contest very, very soon
RennyBAs last blog post..Nordic Golf in the Golden Autumn Beauty
How shocking that someone is stealing your photos!!!
I love the body painting with the fox, these are all really incredible and colorful. Good job and great photography. It really looks like a fun and interesting event.
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Wow that looks awesome! It is really colourful and very artistic!
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Hehehe, you’re fun to hang out with, Girly! If I follow you home and Mr lifecruiser’s okay with it, can I stay a while and follow you around just fer the fun of it?
^5!
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Fascinating and fantastic work! I always find these kinds of competitions so interesting
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Love the body paint pictures – they look fantastic! Also love the halloween theme website!!
hi Lifecruiser
this is incredible art and an excellent post ….what amazing photos…
I love the imagery and fantastic concepts involved!!!
a happy halloween eve to you TOO…your site looks awesome…
cheers from Kim down under in Australia (not Austria)
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Hello,
Yes I was the winner. And this is the 7 price I win. It is not about the jury. I have been judge as well. It is very important to be at the other side as well. When you see all of the works in front of the jury and hear them talk, it is really different then just watching them only as a painting.
Why don’t you check out my website and then write what ever you want.
It is very brutal to comment someones work without to know the story behind the work. You didn’t ask me what I paint and what was the story and concept.
It is quite hard to say- ” It is not fair” The beauty is simply in the eyes of the observer. To win an art competition has a lot to do with the whole work, how was painted, the composition, the contrast, the painting as a whole, the painting as a detail, and last, but not less important then the other facts- to see something different, something new.
The head of the Jury was Shaul – the boss of Mist and he is Jury Member in the World Body Painting Championship, so he knows a lot about body painting.
Greetings
BV
Congratulations for winning the competition and warmth welcome to my blog Bella
I’m sorry that you sound so disappointed and even offended by my opinions, they were of course not meant to do that.
I hope you didn’t miss me saying: “Another amazing bodypainting and I love the birds…..” ?
I’m very honest in my posts (never called brutal before) and we were finding your body painting AMAZING, really, but never the less, this time not the winner.
As you said yourself and which I fully agree with: “the beauty is in the eye of the observer”.
Since this was our first bodypainting contest ever, which I mention in the beginning of the post, I hope you understand that we might find it difficult to understand the judges result.
We can’t judge by all the ingredients that you’re mentioning, our choice is the choice of a non-expert in body paintings, we might be impressed by other criteria than the experts.
I still think that the jury wasn’t the greatest. At least two of them, were not having enough professionality, not even in the art branch. I actually thought it were to downgrade YOUR work to not have proper judges, even if Shaul were the head of the jury.
About the expression “It’s never the right one that wins, right?”, it’s said because there is never ever a way to make everybody happy when it comes to contests, right?
We all have so different taste, so it’s impossible to pick a winner that everyone is satisfied with. That doesn’t necessary mean that the “wrong” picked winner is bad, it’s just not the winner for that person.
When I wrote this post, there where no info out there to get hold of, I didn’t have your name, no other information. After the official site put out their photos from the event I got your name and I did check up your website, but didn’t found so much information about this particular painting. (You’re much welcome to give it to me now afterwards
I do think that it would have been great to get some more detailed information about all the body paintings to better grasp the full meaning of them, without having to ask for them. I actually did miss some kind of information brochure when we were there. Then I would of course have included that information in this post.
I did update the post with your name linked to your website as soon as I got hold of your name, so people can go there by themselves and have a look at your amazing work.
I hope this made you understand this post and us a little bit better and that there is no hard feelings?
Kind regards,
/Lifecruiser.com
Art if on body or canvas is about the same in ways. Sometimes contest judges are not people that know much about or how to do things they judge in. Some sports are that way even. It is just what is a hit in main stream ways at times. It is then not the winning or loss that is important but, more important is if you had fun doing it. As for the bodypaint seen there I think it is better than most paintings that are said to be famous and hits. Art is what critics say is good more than being what is really good or harder to paint. Sadly that is the way it has become.
As for the winner and the others seen I think they are done by people that like what they are doing and therefore that can not be called a bad thing at all. They are very cool and looked fun.
Hello Guys,
First of all, congratulations for such a cool and clean site. Simply unbelievable photos!! I discovered the site accidentally but surely have my few cents to add here…
During the Brazilian Carnaval ( which denotes its official name from Brazil ) , more and more we are seeing beauty queens and models having their body painted in a creative and artistic way during the parades. This has a reason: The Carnaval Association in Rio which regulates official parades prohibited any kind out of out of context nudity. Some carnival artistic directors decided then to use body painting both to compose the theme, called “enredo” and also make sure the beauties use appropriately their heavenly bodies, without losing points in the contest criterion.
The result was that this year in 2010 we had several famous actresses, Carnival Queens, models, being painted by local artists. The samba community has applauded this “new movement” and I believe it has contributed positively to the show / parade overall. In my site , at the photos section I have created a category to promote the pictures and I can even send them to you so you can see what we are doing here in Brazil.
Well, I guess that it for now! Feel free to contact me!
Cheers,
Andre
http://www.brazilcarnival.com.br/photos/category/mardi-gras-body-painting
This is like… the fifth post about Stockholm in your blog. Where do you live? In Stockholm?
Really nice pictures, beautiful colors and a perfect painting technique. Inspiring !