a little 'om-age' to the pretty lights, the overwhelming colour, the ambivalence, the generosity, the poverty and the wealth of mother india and all that is inspired by her. and lets spare more than just a thought for the release of all the wrongly or cowardly imprisoned detainees around the world like
sakineh and
aung san suu kyi by signing up with
www.avaaz.org, not to mention the human rights violations committed by the US authorities in
guantanamo bay
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* husband & wife photographers stratis & beva are the nomads of the fashion world, taking inspiration from decaying environments around the world
* govordhan puja takes place on the fourth day of diwali to celebrate sri krishna's triumph over indra. Charity kinkari brings some of the joys of the festival to impoverished kids |
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* a pale gemma ward stars in the originally titled 'bollywood dreams' shot by patrick demarchelier for vogue india styled by lucinda chambers (2007). india's female population is increasingly suffering from 'snow white syndrome', the pursuit of becoming pale (Shantanu Guha Ray for bbc news, 23 march 2010)
* contemporary artist bharti kher's elephant covered with white sperm bindi, which symbolise female energy and are meant to guard against evil. a white elephant is auspicious in india, whereas it means something of dubious value in the uk |
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* warli art traditionally the remit of women for thousands of years, became known around the world when jivya soma mashe, who is obviously a man, took up the chewed bamboo stick(used in lieu of a paintbrush)
* benoit peverelli shoots indian super lakshmi menon in l'été indien for french biba 2008. her international career started with a swatch ad and became the darling of the behemoths of fashion, namely givenchy and hermes (who made her feel at home by putting her between two elephants), and influential photographers cedric buchet and tezza richardson |
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* the turban or dastaar is a mandatory article of faith for all adult male Sikhs. it helps to cover their long hair, which is never cut out of respect for god's perfection and submission to his will. british researchers are purportedly trying to make a "bulletproof turban" that would allow the Sikhs in the British police to serve in firearms units
* creative collaborators jiten thukral & sumir targa work across disciplines encompassing painting, music, interiors, advertising, etc. there is no wikipedia page for these guys, i'm not sure i'll sleep now i know that it doesn't have the answer to EVERYTHING |
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* korean pop artist choi jeong hwa's 'the unbearable lightness of being' in sydney's botanic garden. his mantra goes think globally, act locally, which you may want to look up (yes, on wikipedia). the sacred lotus is symbol for a person seeking moksha; the release from worldly attachments. it also represents the chakras (centers of consciousness in the body) and in hindu mythology brahma, the creator, came forth from a lotus
* lakshmi gets dazed by josh olins' lens and confused by nicola formichetti's styling (or fourchette as i like to call her, but seeing as she's an avid follower of this blog (not) (yet?), I should probably have kept this to myself. ceci n'est pas une fourchette!) |
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* vogue india pushes the boundaries by shooting luxury items on dirt poor ordinary people for august 2008 issue. is it vulgar exploitation? does it make untouchables look quaint to the upper class vogue reader? or does it bring a slice of unexpected reality to those who enjoy the spoils of an entrenched caste system? i would have given vogue editor priya tanna the benefit of the doubt, had she not made some truely idiotic comments along the lines of 'fashion is for everyone'. i nevertheless think the images are something to behold, fendi bib or not, and if anything, starring in vogue will have put a smile on some faces and two fingers up at the man, or woman
* jitish kallat's auto-rickshaw is made of moulded bones and was snapped up by a british collector for $125,000 in 2007. i wonder if we'll see it at brighton burn up next year? |
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* a thukral & targa potrait - i concur not conquer!
* perdue in peru with daria and lily for vogue 2008. yes, i know peru is not part of the indian subcontinent, point is: this is backpacking lucinda chambers/testino style. i never even brushed my hair when i travelled around kerala |
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* 'epiphany' by multi-heritage londoner shezad dawood. vindaloo lala (go on a diet fat les and media tart alex james should be very ashamed, you know you can say no to something even if they offer you wodges of cash or cheese)
* festival of the elephants in jaipur, rajasthan forms part of holi, the festival of colours. so many festivals and not a hunter welly in sight |
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* a dewy faced anja rubik on an island in the sun snapped by carter smith, clothes almost provided by british vogue
* traditional diwali greeting card feat deities lakshmi, goddess of wealth and prosperity, durga 'the invincible' and sarasvati, the goddess of knowledge, music & the arts |
happy diwali and om shanti shanti shanti
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