Hundred Faces

It's been a while but finally another post is here and better yet a post featuring my latest photoshoot with local photography company Obsidian AIC. The headdress used was constructed back in the Spring and I'd never found a use for it until now, so it was particularly pleasant to be there for this woodland shoot. The idea for the headdress came from Mongolian designs and you can see some of the design process in a previous post. The first set of more orange-hued images were taken by me, personally I'd like to think they convey an atmosphere of intrigue and mystery but with the close ups I'm also happy with how the collage blends into the face, distorting and morphing into her own appearance as opposed to simply wearing a mask. The photos by Obsidian project a more dramatic energy and I also believe the darkness of the background accentuates the post apocolyptic atmosphere, aided by the general outfit also.

 Images by KLV (last two by Obsidian AIC)

5th Character - Preview

For the online publication 5th Character, I will be using the shapes of masks and headdresses from cultures throughout the world (one of which will include Mongolian) that can be regarded as extensions of the body and are often intended to increase the importance of a person. Through drawing inspiration from the past to create my own headdresses constructed with wire and card and then built upon with the use of cut up and collaged body parts, I will be presenting a form of future body.

I've very nearly finished the first headdress/mask after hours of cutting and sticking! I tried to stay quite true to the original Mongolian designs when it comes to shape and I've began to think about the rest of the shoot in terms of styling and make up. I think some kind of shoulder padding will be required both to ensure a visual link to my inspiration and to act as another way of distorting the body, especially if the clothing is all a nude colour. As you can see the piece is not quite ready, the tubes that hang from the 'ram horns' or 'elephant ears' have not been collaged onto yet. The inspiration for the design can be found here, a former post dedicated to Mongolia

Country of the Month: Mongolia

I picked Mongolia as the first country to blog about because I find their traditional headwear absolutely amazing and incredibly inspirational! In particular, women of high social status wore such spectacular headdresses though I'm not sure of their official name, some sources call them 'toudai', 'ugalz', 'elephant ears' or 'mountain goat horn headdresses'. I'm not sure which is correct, if any, but I truly am captivated by their intricacy and the use of unusual shape which contrasts so greatly with the nomadic and simplistic ways of life that Mongolians are typically known for. Historically, there were over one hundred hats for various purposes, seasons, genders or ages and according to a Mongolian fashion blog 'It is advisable to keep one's hat on when entering 'gher', a traditional nomadic dwelling. The rules of etiquette forbade to greet or meet anybody bareheaded. In the olden days neither a man, nor woman was allowed to go into the street or enter someone's house without wearing a hat'. With a national dress originating in practicality and being built on by social meaning, Mongolia is one of the few countries where it is not uncommon to see traditional attire being worn to this day. Below are some photos from the early 1900s, including that of Dondogdulam - the last Queen mother of Mongolia and the full collection can be found here.

There are modern examples of these headdresses too, when I design my next headdress I'm certain this style won't be far from my mind!

Another aspect of Mongolian culture which has fascinated me for a considerable time is throat singing. Whilst  the majority of throat singing bands or solo artists I know originate in Tuva (part of Russia bordering Mongolia), such as Sainkho Namtchylak, Shu-De, and Huun-Huur-Tu, there are notable Mongolian bands too and infact Tuvan styles are extremely similar anyway. The band named Egschiglen or 'Beautiful Melody' stand out for me when it comes to Mongolian throat singing,  that is probably down to the presence of a female vocalist who I feel balances out the deeper tones of the men. I've posted two videos below accompanied by an image of the band and another throat singing example. Though throat singing in any form is an acquired taste, it sounds so transcedent, eerie and always otherworldy to me yet it's history is purely derived from this world. An article on the Guardian describes it best as 'physically connecting the singers to the spirituality of the mountainside. The singing styles were supposedly modelled on the harmonic resonances herders would find naturally occurring around valleys or waterfalls, with some vocal styles configured to mimic the sounds of animals, wind or water.' 

'Throat singers sound as though they have a whole orchestra of instruments, that could never be invented by human hands, caged inside their bodies. It is ancient soul music.'