Painswick's Art Couture show winners

I had planned to visit the Art Couture Painswick show this afternoon which is held in the graveyard of Painswick church, famed for its hundred yew trees. The event is held every couple of years and attracts big crowds to enjoy the amazing design work from local artists who are invited to create unique wearable art costumes. A separate competition is also held for Body Art painting and in between the competitions various bands play on the covered stage right beside the church walls.

I arrived a bit late and missed much of the costume competition cat walk. A Spitfire flew around in several circles overhead by arrangement, and I recognised the unique sound from its engine reminding me of my childhood when many were still flying. I met several friends whilst waiting for the body art show  and managed to get a good position to take pictures.

The body art which has to cover the whole body ranges from the very amateur to the work of professional make-up artists, so it is really colourful and amazingly conceived to fit the competition's themes. Judging was by professional body artists and local artists and in several categories.

When the winners were announced the three winning models in the categories came back on stage, with the artists who created the work. But all the models were asked back to parade on stage and then await the decision of the 'Best in Show'.  My blip is of the designer and model of the Best Costume who won the 'Best in Show' award, worth another several hundred pounds. In the background on the left are the winner and second place in the main body art competition. I would have featured them but I fear that their nakedness would break the Blip rules.  I have added a closer vier of the Body Art winners in an 'Extra photos'. I will probably put some of the designs on Flickr eventually, but it must wait a few days as I am going away for a few days to Dorset.

When I got home with a full Compact Flash card I found that they couldn't be 'read', or even viewed in the camera.  I have only just got the pictures, because I had to employ a local company to rescue the RAW files, which I think are nearly all there, with just a few losses due to corruption. Phew.