The Art of Body Painting

Body painting is another form of body art that also known as temporary tattoo. The traditional body painting culture exists since the ancient tribal cultures. Often worn during ceremonies, it still survives in this ancient form among the indigenous people of Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific islands and parts of Africa. A semi-permanent form of body painting known as Mehndi, using dyes made of henna (hence also known rather erroneously as "henna tattoo"), was and is still practiced in India and the Middle East, especially on brides. Since the late 1990s, Mehndi has become popular amongst young women in the Western world.

Nowadays, this kind of body art is still popular, even more popular then it used to be. Unlike the ancient types of body paint, today we have developed a lot of new supplies and kinds of this kind of body art. There a lot of festivals, conventions dedicated to this amazing form of art. Body paintings can also typically be seen at football matches, at rave parties, and at certain festivals. The World Body painting Festival in Seeboden in Austria is the biggest art event in the body painting theme and thousands of visitors admire the wonderful work of the participants. Many artists work professionally as body painters across the world. Their work is seen regularly in television commercials etc. Body painters also work frequently in the film arena especially in science fiction with more and more elaborate alien creations  being body painted. Stills advertising also used body painting with hundreds of body painting looks on the pages of the world's magazines every year. Body painting is not always large pieces on fully nude bodies, but can involve smaller pieces on displayed areas.

Face painting

Face painting is the artistic application of cosmetic "paint" to a person's face. There are special water-based cosmetic "paints" made for face painting; people should ask before having face paints applied what products are being used. Acrylic and tempera craft paints are not meant for use on skin and are not acceptable, nor are watercolor pencils or markers. From ancient times, it has been used for hunting, religious reasons, and military reasons (such as camouflage and to indicate membership in a military unit). Nowadays it's just another way for self expression at county fairs, large open-air markets (especially in Europe and the Americas), and other locations that attract children and adolescents.

There are many kinds of face paint, including:

Designs that include the emblems of favorite sports teams, cartoon characters, and other designs that are "cute" or otherwise appealing to the young. Popular face painting designs include: Tiger, Clown, Spider-Man etc.

Body paints

Most of them are made according to stringent guidelines, meaning these are non-toxic, non-allergenic, and can easily be washed away.                 

These are either applied with hands, paint brush, and synthetic sponges or natural sea sponge, or alternatively with an airbrush. Dramatic designs that appeal to all ages.