Give him a hand

I recently posted these exquisite body painting pictures by Italian artist, Guido Daniele. Given my curious nature, I had to contact the artist and tell him how much I appreciate his work. We had a nice cyber chat. Here’s a snippet of our conversation:

CLH: You've been an artist since the early 70's. India played a large role in your early education.

Guido: Yes, Tibetan art taught me to concentrate and pay attention to the minutae and details in my paintings.

The first request for Hanimals was from an English-German bank for an advertising campaign.

(Interviewer’s note: How ironic! I am a member of a German-American family who loves your work!)

CLH: How long does it take to do a hand painting? A full-body painting?

Guido: A few hours – anywhere from three to six hours. Sometimes ten. The maximum time for a total body painting such as ‘Tattoo’ took me thirteen hours.

CLH: You call your hand paintings - Manimali (handimals). Do you have a special affinity for animals?

Guido: Of course, I love animals, trees, stones, mountains, oceans, clean water, hair, no war, no violence, respect for human rights. I am an idealist who hopes to do something positinve in this world.

CLH: You already have, Guido. You already have.