World Bodypainting Festival in Southern Austria brings together hundreds of the best bodypainters globally. Models are painted during a 10 hour process and then perform in front of thousands of fans to win the competition in a beautiful setting.

1. We had the extraordinary pleasure of
attending the World Bodypainting
Festival on a beautiful Lake in
Portschach in Southern Austria

3. Bodypainting artists from around the
world converge in Austria each year for
this prestigious festival. Models stand for
8-10 hours to allow the artists to create
their masterpieces. The process begins by
drawing outlines of the intended art on
the model’s body.

5. Then, each
aspect of
the work is
meticulously
applied one
brush stroke
at a time.

8. Transformations into
the final artwork are
amazing to watch
unfold over hours.

11. Male and female models
each participate in the
multi-day festival.
Airbrushing is one of the
categories.

12. Models have to
stay nourished
during this
all day
transformation
process.

22. Models become actors taking
on the personalities of their
artwork

23. Some models wear contact
lenses to enhance the
character’s portrayal

28. Bodypainting also offers
the opportunity for
advertising and
promotion at this
World Festival.

31. For some creations,
foam latex
prosthetics are added
to enhance the
illusion

33. After painting is
completed,
model-actors
perform in
character and are
judged for prizes.

35. Thousands of people watch as each model with completed body art
performs on stage next to the lake.

40. We spent time with Craig Tracy, a
bodypainter from New Orleans.
We own some of his artwork. He
won the entire World
Bodypainting Festival in 2005 and
is highly respected globally.

41. Craig Tracy is the
master of illusion
in bodypainting.
On the next slide,
you will see how
this beautiful
image was
actually crafted.

42. "It is my intent to continue to
explore and expand the
perceptions and
boundaries of this most
ancient, alluring, and
contemporary art form.“
~ Craig Tracy

43. On the following slides you will see the vast variety of
Craig’s body painting achievements.