New vs old

  

Death by plastic

Of Bangkok’s environmental problems – a sinking water table, stinking canals, the clearing of the city’s trees – its choking addiction to plastic is one of the most visible. With its delicious culture of street food (where snacks are frequently served in styrofoam and/or double bagged) and in its plastic-happy 7-11s the city churns through a frightening amount of single-use plastics. Indeed, Thailand is one of the five South East Asian nations said to be responsible for 60% of all the plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.

Bangkok-based Norwegian photographer Ben Zander is seeking to raise awareness of the issue (as well as money to supply 7-11s with paper bags.) His project is a photo series called “Death by plastic” featuring Thai celebs (like the host of the Face Thailand here) posing against plastic pollution.

The pictures will be auctioned for the cause.

Face off

Photo shoot from Kaltblut magazine.

 

This breaks the world…

On humans and sharks

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An exhibition currently on show at the Hong Kong Maritime museum, next to the Star Ferry pier.

 

Fashion monster

The one and only Francois Sagat ❤️

One Summer afternoon

  

Queendom of the Merina

Above, a sculpture from an exhibition of Malagasy art at New York’s Metropolitan Museum titled “Kingdom of the Merina” and below, Madagascar’s “mad queen” Ranavalona I. 

I was recently reading about the interesting historical figure of Queen Ranavalona, who ruled Madagascar with an iron fist from the 1830s to the 1860s. Traditionally described as a cruel tyrant, and sometimes said to have been insane, she has recently been subject to some historical revisionism. Her rule, which relied on forced labour and featured the violent persecution of Christians, was undoubtedly brutal. But postcolonial historians have wondered if her determination to stop European colonialism in its tracks and preserve Madagscar’s traditions and sovereignty (unsuccessful in the end) deserve attention as mitigating factors.

Among the hallmarks of Ranavalona’s rule was the widespread use of the tangena justice system, a kind of trial-by-torture reminiscent of that used in the witch trials of medieval Europe. An accused person would swallow the poison of the tangena tree. One source quoted by wikipedia says: “The accused would be fed the poison along with three pieces of chicken skin: if all three pieces of skin were vomited up then innocence was declared, but death or a failure to regurgitate all three pieces of skin indicated guilt.^[4] Those who died were declared sorcerers. According to custom, the families of the dead were not permitted to bury them within the family tomb, but rather had to inter them in the ground at a remote, inhospitable location, with the head of the corpse turned to the south.”

In 1838 some 20% of the population may have died this way, in an anti-Christian purge.

Oz: fresh fashion faces from downunder

Above, pink-haired Louis Vuitton “it girl” Fernanda Ly, and below, fellow Sydney University student – and instagram-famous photographer, stylist and now fashion world  heavy-hitter – Margaret Zhang.

Photography straight from the Aussie ‘burbs by Elvis di Fazio, Frank Ocean’s visual collaborator:

  

And below, another Elvis di Fazio collaborator, former Sydney club dancer and now top New York model, Daniel Garofali.

 

Rainy rainy rain

It has been a sodden, sullen week of sudden Amber rain downpours, where rain fell in white sheets, and grey ominous mornings waiting for the rain to hit. Inside, my apartment was full of damp clothes and dripping umbrellas. The weather is forecast to last for at least another half a week.

The art of Gengoroh Tagame

Above, new Tagame-inspired swimwear from hipster manga company Massive and below, the infamous bath at Ueno’s 24 Kaikan.

Mommy’s little helpers

Bangkok model Cindy Bishop features in an acerbic, and colour-saturated, domestic-themed spread for Thai Harpers Bazaar – just in time for (Western) Mother’s Day!

  

The glorious rattan art of Sopheap Pich

  

Emmanuelle Moureaux’s Forest of Numbers at Tokyo’s National Art Center.