Nerds Republic

The festival, which has no set date but is usually held in late August, allows people to revisit their loved ones. This woman is having an emotional moment over the casket of her late husband.

But it goes further than just seeing the caskets.

But it goes further than just <i>seeing</i> the caskets. desktop 1442608034

The mummified bodies are removed from their coffins and lovingly tended to. This includes cleaning the bodies, removing their old clothes and giving them new ones.

Some of the bodies are even propped up so the family can gather around them, just as they would when the person was alive.

Looking into the face of death like this isn’t seen as scary or sad, but rather as a way to connect with death — and transcend it.

This mummy is especially heartrending — it’s a baby.

Dust and debris are removed from the body, and then the bodies are dressed. Their personal affects, like this man’s glasses, are kept, as well.

People so still respect the possible dangers of breathing in the dust, so many wear masks.

The photos you see here were taken by photographer Paul Koudounaris, who specializes in capturing the way different cultures approach, deal with, and celebrate death. This festival might seem macabre to people from other cultures, but to the people in Tana Toraja, it’s a heartfelt expression of a love that even death can’t conquer. “To the villagers it is sign of the love they still share for those who have passed on but are still present spiritually,” he explains. “It is a way of showing them respect by letting them know that they are still members of the family group, and still hold an important place in local society.”

Many people think looking into a face like this is frightening, but to the people in Tana Toraja, these are still the faces of their beloved relatives.

Ma’Nene might seem strange, maybe even distasteful, to those outside of this culture. But in a society that seeks to get as far away from death as possible, it’s refreshing to see people embrace and celebrate it so readily.

You can see more of Koudounaris’ photography on his website and Facebook page, and learn about the ways people all around the world honor their dead.

When you think of lava, you probably imagine glowing red and orange liquid flowing over a rocky plain. And in most places, you’d be exactly right. Lava is typically orange and red.

But not always.

Photographer Reuben Wu learned this firsthand on a trip to Indonesia’s Ijen volcano, where he saw the aptly named Blue Fire Crater, which is famous for its molten sulfur lava that burns a brilliant sapphire blue.

This is Ijen from a distance.

Inside the crater, sulfur cooks at temperatures exceeding 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

The trek to see this blue lava is not an easy one.

It’s a two-hour hike up the mountain, and then another 45 minutes down into the crater itself.

But it’s worth it to see this incredible natural phenomenon.

There are other places on Earth that produce blue lava like this, but Ijen’s crater is the largest. For that reason, it’s a popular tourist destination, despite the climb.

To really capture the otherworldly magic of this place, Wu stayed until after dark, using only the light of the moon and of the lava itself to take his photos.

It doesn’t look real, but it is.

The molten sulfur is not only hot, but can also shoot sixteen feet into the air.

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(via Colossal, Wikipedia)

You can see more of Wu’s photography on his website and Instagram, and more images of his trip to Indonesia on his Behance page.

Painting with coffee and creating other food-based art is all the rage right now. Occasionally, though, someone comes along and ups the ante a bit, pushing the trend even further. One such artist is Ghidaq al-Nizar, who creates magical little scenes using the remnants of his morning brew.

Al-Nizar calls using his leftovers to make art “zero-waste coffee,” meaning he uses everything, including the grounds, in his creation process.

He also paints on unique surfaces besides paper, including dried leaves. The coffee tones on the leaves’ natural colors create a warm, earthy palette of soft browns. His paintings can be found on plates, as well.

So why paint with coffee and not, say, paint? For al-Nizar, it’s all about feeling, and, like may people, he has some strong feelings about coffee. “I love intimacy,” he says. “I feel it with coffee and it’s fun to have fun with something you love. So I can’t find any better medium to celebrate my feelings. Artists have to feel when they do something, and I think it applies for everyone…If you can’t feel it, you will leave it.”

He also gets creative with how he sets up his scenes, like in this piece, which is built off of a handprint.

Sometimes, other items get involved.

He even gets sculptural, using the grounds to create 3-D elements.