It's a Balloon World After All

Started by magirob, January 01, 2018, 11:11:02 AM

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magirob

It's a Balloon World After All - Netherlands

Goedendag, Hoe gaat het?

I like the Netherlands, I am lucky that my ballooning has taken me to the Netherlands twice so far and I am excited to be going again in a couple of weeks time. I had two options when planning this picture, the easy option or the hard option. I could have thought long and hard about 3 or 4 things to make from balloons, maybe a boy with his finger in a dam? or some Gouda? how about some Delft or a Van Gogh? nope, I took the easy route and I chose the 3 most obvious things I could think of, Tulips, Clogs and Windmills.

I recently saw my friend Dave (a balloon man) make a tulip and after talking to Twistina (a balloon lady) about her Tulip design I kind of created a version half way between the 2. I have strolled through the flower market in Amsterdam a few times but I have yet to see the tulip fields, Maybe next time.

My Windmill is based on one I saw Pieter Van Engen make, he made a fantastic scene sometime ago and I loved it, I have made my design slightly different but it is heavily inspired by Pieter. I saw a couple of Windmills during my last visit to the Netherlands, in the beautiful town of Leiden. During my first visit to the Netherlands I was taken to the amazing Open Air museum in historic Arnhem by Ingrid and Dennis, several windmills can be seen here.

Next we have a Clog, Wallie gave me the idea at a recent balloon event so thanks Wallie for reminding me of this design, would you believe it is made from a heart shaped balloon?

The Orange border of this picture is a nod to several things, Most importantly it is the color of the Dutch Royal Family. Orange is the colour of the Netherlands Football team home shirt, also the colour is also a nod to one of the greatest musicals I have ever seen, 'Soldaat van Oranje' is a technical marvel and mind blowing theatrical creation and an incredible story that I recommend to everyone.

Finally we have the lady in traditional Dutch costume, costumes vary across the country but the lady here is wearing a traditional hat, this would often be made of lace or stiff material, I think they are called Square hats. She is also wearing her long black dress with a white lace front.

Tot de volgende keer, doei

magirob

It's a Balloon World After All - South Africa

Molo, This week I am heading back to the African continent and I am taking a look at a very diverse country with a fascinating history, It is South Africa.  With such an interesting history and diverse culture it was difficult for the to decide what to make out of balloons however I decided to mainly focus on the largest ethnic group of South Africa, the Zulu people.

First of all in the top left I have a pair of Assegai, they are a traditional Zulu spear or javelin used in hunting or warfare and are names after the tree they are made from, the Assegai tree.

Masks of all shapes and sizes can be found across the African continent and are used for ceremonial, spiritual and religious events. A special status is given to the people who create the masks and to those that wear them in ceremonies. In most cases, mask-making is an art form that is passed on from father to son. African masks come in all different colours, such as red, black, orange, and brown.

One of the most well known sights across Africa and South Africa is the Baobab tree, This incredible tree has adapted to survive the harsh dry environments, it stores moisture in the huge trunk enabling it to produce a nutritious fruit, this is how the Baobat became known as "The Tree of Life".

My little person is a Zulu tribesman, he is wearing a leopard skin headpiece and is carrying a traditional Nguni shield, these are usually made from cow-hide and should be carried in the left hand.

until next week, Hamba Kahle


magirob

It's a Balloon World After All - Egypt

هلا, كيف حالك؟
Hala, kaifa haluka? This week I am taking a look at a fascinating country with an amazing history, it is Egypt.

In the bottom left of my picture I have an Ankh, this is an ancient hieroglyphic symbolising life, this symbol was seen all across Egypt and often in many other countries. The Egyptian gods are often portrayed carrying the Ankh by its loop, or bearing one in each hand, arms crossed over their chest.

Above the Ankh I have created another well known symbol, the Eye of Horus, it is a symbol of protection, royal power and good health. Horus was the ancient Egyptian sky god who was usually depicted as a falcon.

The Scarab Beetle was considered sacred during ancient Egyptian times, they are now commonly known as Dung beetles, amulets were created to look like the Scarabs and were used for trading, for decoration and for lots of other ceremonies.

At the top of my picture I have created a version of the Suez Canal, I think this marvel of engineering has a truly fascination history, opened in 1869 it is the main route for shipping between the Mediterranean and the Red sea. Did you know that the Statue of Liberty was originally designed for the northern entrance of the Suez Canal? As you can see in my version of the Suez Canal I have created 3 ships from different ages, the sailing ship was the first to travel through the canal, next we have the passenger liner, and finally the modern cargo ship.

My Egyptian man is a Pharaoh, He is wearing his traditional golden head dress and even has his little beard.
Until next time, مع السلامة - ma'a ssalama!

magirob

It's a Balloon World After All - Russia

Привет! Как поживаешь?

Hello all, after a short break I am back with the biggest country of all, yes it is Russia.

The first thing I made for Russia was the little monkey character, Russia is not somewhere you would expect to find monkeys however this little chap is a popular children's character called Cheburashka, He was created by Soviet writer Eduard Uspensky in 1966 and is also known as Topple. Cheburashka features in books, animated films and has appeared at several Olympic Games as the official Russian mascot.

The egg is of course a Fabergé egg, created by the House of Fabergé in St Petersburg between 1885 and 1917; it is unknown how many of these eggs were made however it is thought to be 69 of which 57 have survived. Most Fabergé eggs were made for the Russian Tsars and nobility, they have appeared in many films and TV shows, for me the most famous appearance was in the 1983 James Bond film 'Octopussy' starring Roger Moore.

As you can see I have made a Russian Doll (or Matryoshka doll), Made of wood they are a set of wooden dolls of decreasing size placed one inside another, first created in the late 1800s they are now known around the world coming in call different shapes and sizes. The world record for the most layers of Russian dolls currently stands at 51 dolls.

My little Russian mad is dressed for winter; he is wearing his fluffy Russian hat (Ushanka) which is made from sheepskin, rabbit or muskrat fur. The name Ushanka means Ears and this is because the flaps of the hat come down tying below the chin keeping the ears and jaw warm in the cold weather.
Until next time, Увидимся

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Russia russian ushanka hat doll Matryoshka Fabergé egg Cheburashka topple wooden woman painted jewels jewel tsar octopussy robdriscoll bowtieballoonguy balloon balloons balloonart sculpture aroundtheworld balloonworld rob driscoll




magirob

It's a Balloon World After All - Italy
Buongiorno! Che piacere vederti!

This week I am taking a look at a wonderful country, it is Italy, I made ALL these balloons at the Balloonapark event in Paris last week.

The first of the items I made was the Roman Helmet, I love delving into the history of Italy and of course the Romans feature heavily in the history books. The traditional date for the creation of Rome was 21 April 753 BC (how very accurate). The correct name for my Roman Helmet is a Galea, my helmet mostly resembles an Imperial Gallic helmet.

How could I take a look at Italy and not make a slice of Pizza?, The word Pizza dates back to 997 but similar pizza style dishes have been around for centuries before that. The world's largest pizza was created in Rome during December 2012, and measured 1,261 square metres, The world's longest pizza was made in Naples in 2016. It was baked using a series of special ovens on wheels which moved along its length, and measured 1.15 miles in length.

My Scooter is a Vespa, The name Vespa means Wasp in Italian, This wonderful little scooter was first created in 1946 and shot to fame in 1952 when Audrey Hepburn rode side saddle with Gregory Peck through the streets of Rome in the movie Roman Holiday.

My little man is a Gondolier from the city of Venice; traditionally he would be one of 3 Oarsmen who would operate the Gondola boat around the canals of Venice using the oar. For centuries the Gondola were the main form of transport around Venice but now they are mainly a tourist attraction, The profession of gondolier is now controlled by a guild and it issues around 400 licences
Until next week, Arrivederci! 


magirob

Its a Balloon World After All - Australia

G'day folks, Its been glorious weather here in the UK so I thought it would be fair dinkums to stick another shrimp on the barbie and think about taking a look down under at Australia. Crickey, this one has been hard yakka as I wanted to get it ridgey-didge, I nearly spit the dummy when I couldn't get it looking right and ive been flat chat but im stoked now its done and its straight to the pool room.
(Translation – Hello, its warm here in England and I would like a prawn to grill on an open fire, this week I am looking at Australia, gosh it was difficult as I wanted to get it looking great, I was upset when I struggled to get it looking right but by golly I am happy with the result.)

When I think of Australia I usually first think of the weird and wonderful animals they have, When I visited Perth in 2009 we went to a wildlife park and I loved it, the kangaroos were great, and I really loved the koalas so I had to include one. Did you know that Koalas have fingerprints just like humans?

The bird footprints I have made are the aboriginal sign for Emu tracks, the Aboriginal men followed these tracks to hunt the emu it was a staple food source and was used for bush medicine. It is also often seen on Aboriginal artwork.

Just above that is a boomerang, these have been historically used for hunting, as well as a sport, and entertainment.and come in various shapes and sizes. They are often seen painted with aboriginal designs and patterns. A boomerang was used to set a Guinness World Record with a throw of 427.2 metres by David Schummy in 2005 in Queensland Australia.

The Sydney Opera house was something I just had to make, it was a tricky as I was not sure how to put it together. It has to be one of the most famous buildings in the world and was opened in 1973 by Queen Elizabeth II.

When deciding what kind of person to make for Australia I did consider making an Indigenous Australian however I seem to think that they are not keen on having their photos taken so I decided to go with a typical Australian guy with his cork hat on.

Anyway, Have a good one mate, Oooroo!