Funerary urns as modern art

"Each piece is like a person," said Maureen Lomasney, who runs the Sonoma County gallery Art Honors Life, specializing in funerary vessels. "It's like you're at a party. Some people have lampshades on their heads, some are talking very seriously, some are just posing, beautiful and elegantly. They can be whimsical, stately, charming. Each has character."The creative growth in what has long been a tradition-bound field can be traced to several factors. Cremation is considered less taboo by religions than in eras past. The practice also can be less costly than buying a plot and staging a casket burial. Perhaps most important: Ashes are portable. Modern families who move frequently and disperse themselves geographically may find comfort in bringing Dad or Grandma with them rather than making all-too-rare treks to a distant cemetery.For Lomasney, the movement is really about regaining control over a process that is largely uncontrollable -- that, and getting people to talk about death, which, she dryly said, "is a subject we tend to bury in this country." Making artists part of the discussion makes people more comfortable talking about loss, Lomasney Hair weaving said. "We are mainstreaming the topic of death because we are presenting urns as beautiful objects that help people memorialize their loved ones."PersonalizationSan Diego residents Andy and Melissa Mikulak lost their son Max, 7, in 2008 to neuroblastoma, a malignant tumor that strikes children. When the end came and the Mikulaks found themselves in the funeral home looking through catalogs of urns, they didn't see anything that felt appropriate for Max. The boy liked light sabers and fighter planes, but the catalog?"It was all very bland -- expected themes and forms," Andy Mikulak said.They bought something temporary and a few months later connected with Chris Rizzo, an artist in Portland, Ore., who worked in a machine shop that made high-end engine parts for motorcycles. The Mikulaks saw his artwork on Lomasney's website, Funeria.com, and though they had never bought art before, the couple talked with the artist and settled on a design: a machined aluminum container that looks like something from a "Star Wars" X-Wing fighter."My original direction to Chris was it should look like something that is powered and goes very fast or fell off of something that goes very fast," Andy Mikulak said. "We sent him pictures of Max's drawings and his stuff, and he interpreted that into the vessel that holds his ashes. It had a positive impact on the grieving process. It was one thing we could do that we had in our control. Looking through the funeral home's catalog of urns you feel like something is being imposed Weaving hair on you, just like the cancer treatment."For Rizzo, creating the piece made him feel as though he had known Max."This was not like a regular art piece, not just an object on a pedestal," Rizzo said. "Even though it's a hard metal object, there is humanity involved, a connection between people, from my labor to the person that physically goes into it."Rizzo spent more than 80 hours on the project, machining down a solid 4-inch thick bar of aluminum in a process he compared to sculpting. He also worked on a wooden traveling version for the Mikulaks because the Transportation Security Administration wouldn't let the metal model through airport security.Seattle urn artist Tony Knapp takes his kayak into Elliott Bay to gather driftwood, which he soaks in Sumi ink and adorns with polymer clay or cement. His figures are slightly cartoonish, with a Remy hair vague Tim Burton undertone -- rough stick figures with removable heads and nooks in their stomachs for keepsakes. He's working on a dog series in which the urn is made of black steel, the lid is a spiked collar, and a bone on the door opens to a recess where pictures may be kept. "I wouldn't be making urns if they were just a cookie jar with a lid on top, sitting on a mantel," Knapp said. "That's too morbid. If it's a wacky-looking guy holding his own ashes over his head -- now that lightens everything. The baby boomers all want to stand out. Even in the end, we want some whimsical receptacle for ourselves."Personalization is the philosopher's stone for the funeral industry. Urns come in the shape of motorcycle gas tanks, bowling pins, golf bags and cowboy boots.

Wigs & Hair Pieces for Necessary Wearers - those suffering from the after effects of Chemo Treatment and Alopecia

Focus: Necessity Wearers – Temporary Hair Loss for Asian LadiesWith the evolvement of technology, ladies in the West (UK, EU, USA) now have hair-wear options they never dreamed possible. Whether it is for a personal use, a social occasion, catwalk show or even a magazine shoot – there are such versatile and durable styles of Wigs being manufactured that aims at creating a variety of stunning looks with that added sophistication.Wigs were once so obvious that they would be noticed a mile away and hence people were embarrassed. Today with the latest technique and near human hair type look and feel of the fibre used, a person could be stood right next to you and could even be touching your hair and they would not know. The stigma has disappeared in the West – UK, Europe, USA about wearing a wig.While in the West the necessasity wearers are no longer deprived of their self esteem by exposing their scanty or falling hair as they can easily resort to wearing a Wig, in the Indian Sub Continent, the stigma is still very much on.It is therefore the sincere intention of the writer to try to remove these barriers and myth about Wigs and Hair pieces.There is the most chinese remi urgent and alarmingly neglected segment in this society of Necessity Wearers whose psycological effect and feelings due to the loss of hair - (be it suddenly due to being told that they have cancer and hence will undergo Chemo and thereby are told that they would lose their hair in the next week or so ......or those who suffer from a Hair Falling problem that is commonly called Alopecia) is totally supressed and overlooked. People with Cancer are more traumatized by the loss of their hair than being told they have cancer. One of the first questions anyone asks the doctor when they are told about having to undergo Chemo therapy is "will I lose my hair?" The answer in most cases is ‘Yes' unfortunately.These people include but not limited to those girls and ladies within the age bracket of 15 to 60 who suffer from Hair Loss.In UK and Europe, these ladies will seek out a wig before they loose their hair so when the dreaded day comes they can begin wearing their wig and this avoids them having to go through the embarrassment of being seen without their hair. In India such a facility has not been available until now.Needless to say that Hair on the head is considered a lady's ‘crown & glory' and hence for hair bulk whatever reason if they begin to lose it, the psychological effect it has on her self-esteem and confidence is beyond words. The most common cause of Hair Loss is Alopecia and temporary loss of hair due to Cancer treatment – Chemo Therapy.it is therefore important that they are made aware that with all other things that have evolved, this product too has now evolved to make it look as natural as one's own natural hair. One can easily obtain a Wig that suits one's style and colour of hair and these Wigs are made in Natural looking Synthetic Fibre from Japan or from a more versatile fibre called High Heat Fibre which allows one to curl and tong their Hair Piece or are also made from 100% Human Hair.Moreover these products are now made in Bulk and hence are affordable to the average earning family.Wig is almost like cosmetic surgery for your hair without the pain or the cost.Profile of Fibre/ Hair Used in Wigs and Hair Pieces:Synthetic wigs and hairpieces are made with a highly superior Japanese Kanekalon fibre that not only looks like natural European hair but also feels like natural European hair. They come in beautiful colours that bulk hair never fade. This is a very versatile fibre that retains its shape after washing - as long as one follows the After-Care Instructions that come with the product. Also the fine texture of the fibre makes it a desirable choice for simulating the texture of human hair. High-Heat Fibre have better features that make the fibre feel "just like human hair" with certain inbuilt characteristics such as being able to use high heat up to 180 degrees. Hence one can curl or tong them and then straighten them again. One can therefore use heated rollers, curling/straightening irons and hair dryers on these products. These fibres pass tests by experts in the UK. The Fibre is Monocrylic Flame Retardant and Non Flammable. Human Hair Wigs: These are considered the High End Hair Pieces due to the Remy Human Hair being used. These are more often used by ladies who have a long-term purpose of using a wig. It could well be for fashion or a permanent hair problem too.