Everybody’s Talking
Glow in the dark:
An American artist with a love of photography and black light found a new canvas to create images: the human body. John Poppleton uses UV body paint in a dark studio to create incredible scenery and imagery on the backs of his models. He paints balmy sunsets, purple clouds, rolling waves, and shimmering waterfalls that glow luminously under black light. Viewers describe the results as magical. He was once a wedding and portrait photographer and uses his extensive photography experience to prepare his surreal pieces.
Fake food:
In Japan, restaurant owners often use plastic food to portray the dishes on their menus. Some of this fake food, known as sampuru, appears very realistic. One woman from Chiba Prefecture thinks sampuru is so interesting that she started collecting it. Akiko Obata boasts a collection of about 8,000 pieces. She has a special love for the displays of fake desserts, but she has everything from spaghetti and sushi to French bread, hamburgers, and pizza. She keeps her huge assortment of authentic-looking, fake food in a room in her home.
Lost and found:
A three-year-old boy named James O’Reilly wandered away from the home where his family was vacationing in Wyadup, South Australia, one day around 7:30 a.m., and was missing until 7 p.m. His parents were frantic, but the story has a happy ending: he was found by his grandfather and uncle. That was after police were called in and a search party was organized, which included dozens of people from the area who volunteered to help. It also included the police dog squad and helicopter. Despite being out in chilly rain for 12 hours, James was healthy and happy to see his family after his ordeal.
Forehead photos:
A Greek man, Georgios Schieich, posts images of himself on social media, but his photos are not the usual smile-at-the-camera selfies. Rather, they are pictures of his forehead, with various environments in the background. Behind his forehead, the photo may show a city street, a building’s façade, a harbor, or a blank wall. Schieich says he started posting his forehead in response to a girlfriend asking, “Where are you?” That was over six years ago, and while the girlfriend is long gone, Schieich is enjoying the game of taking the same kind of photo for his social media posts.