Body painting

Often worn during cultural ceremonies, it is believed to assist with the moderation of body heat and the use of striped patterns may reduce the incidence of biting insects.

Many indigenous peoples of Central and South America paint jagua tattoos, or designs with Genipa americana juice on their bodies.

There has been a revival of body painting in Western society since the 1960s, in part prompted by the liberalization of social mores regarding nudity and often comes in sensationalist or exhibitionist forms.

The current modern revival could be said to date back to the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago when Max Factor Sr. and his model Sally Rand were arrested for causing a public disturbance when he body-painted her with his new make-up formulated for Hollywood films.

[4] Body art today evolves to the works more directed towards personal mythologies, as Jana Sterbak, Rebecca Horn, Michel Platnic, Youri Messen-Jaschin or Javier Perez.

[citation needed] Joanne Gair is a body paint artist whose work appeared for the tenth consecutive year in the 2008 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

[citation needed] Following the already established trend in Western-Europe, body painting has become more widely accepted in the United States since the early 1990s.

In 2006 the first gallery dedicated exclusively to fine art body painting was opened in New Orleans by World Bodypainting Festival Champion and Judge, Craig Tracy.

[citation needed] In 2009, a popular late night talk show Last Call with Carson Daly on NBC network, featured a New York-based artist Danny Setiawan who creates reproductions of masterpieces by famous artists such as Salvador Dalí, Vincent van Gogh, and Gustav Klimt on human bodies aiming to make fine art appealing for his contemporaries who normally would not consider themselves as art enthusiasts.

Hack is best known for the Gotye music video for the song "Somebody That I Used to Know", which uses stop-motion animation body painting and has received over 800 million views on YouTube.

Using this technique, Platnic brought to life several scenes of paintings made famous by artists Francis Bacon, Egon Schiele, David Hockney and Lucian Freud and placed them in a different context.

[14] Los Angeles artist, Paul Roustan, is known for his work in body painting and photography which spans both the fine art and commercial worlds.

[16] Trina Merry is a body painter known for camouflaging models into settings, backgrounds and, in her "Lust of Currency" series, famous paintings.

[18][19] Peruvian artist Cecilia Paredes is known for her style of painting her own body to camouflage herself against complex floral backgrounds and natural landscapes.

Some tribes in Sub-Saharan Africa use the technique during rituals and festivals, and many of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America now use it for ceremonies, having previously also used it for hunting and warfare.

[24] Women in Madagascar paint their faces with designs featuring stars, flowers and leaves using contrasting yellow and white wood paste called masonjoany.

[25] In some forms of Western folk dance, such as Border Morris, the faces of the dancers are painted with a black pigment in a tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages.

During the 19th century blackface theatrical makeup gained popularity when it was used by non-black performers to represent black people, typically in a minstrel show.

[28] At about the same time the hippie movement adopted face painting,[29] and it was common for young people to decorate their cheeks with flowers or peace symbols at anti-war demonstrations.

[30] For several decades it has been a common entertainment at county fairs, large open-air markets (especially in Europe and the Americas), and other locations that attract children and adolescents.

[citation needed] It is common in armies all over the world for soldiers in combat to paint their faces and other exposed body parts (hands, for example) in natural colors such as green, tan, and loam for camouflage purposes.

Modern water-based face and body paints are made according to stringent guidelines, meaning these are non-toxic, usually non-allergenic, and can easily be washed away.

The popular TV variety show, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, featured bodies painted with comedic phrases and jokes during transitions.

Skin Wars is a body painting reality competition hosted by Rebecca Romijn that premiered on Game Show Network on August 6, 2014.