To produce the images that convey his fatalistic and ironic approach to life, tinged with hope, he needed the environment and knowledge of Mother Russia, oiled with a bit of bribery to certain circus trainers. Enter the Great Russian Bear, the personification of Russia for the last several centuries, onto center stage and into his studio. The bear is recognized as both brutish and cute – Misha was the mascot for the 1980 Olympic Games – and has remained a symbol of Russia since Tsarist times. In 2009 it is the symbol of the United Russia Party.

Turkish artist Nezaket Ekici performs a live art performance entitled 'Emotion in Motion' on the first day of Art Basel 2015, Hong Kong, China, 13 March 2015. The Hong Kong show of Art Basel features 233 galleries from 37 countries and territories, presenting works ranging from the Modern period of the early 20th century to the most contemporary artists of today, according to the official press release. (Photo by Alex Hofford/EPA)

There's something inherently Ghibli-esque about Chong FeiGiap's beautiful paintings, capturing that sense of wonder typically present in the best animes the studio had to offer, as well as a dash of Tekkon Kinkreet's amazingly colorful, complex cities.

A visitor passes behind the sculpture “Puma-Dentist” made with plastic, wax and original heads of a puma and a hind by Austrian artist Deborah Sengl during an exhibition at the art gallery Deschler in Berlin April 15, 2008. (Photo by Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters)

A store staff walks past other staffs dressed up as Stormtrooper and Death Star Gunner (R) from the film “Star Wars” before launching the film's new toys at Loft Variety Store in Shibuya shopping district in Tokyo, September 3, 2015. New “Star Wars” toys and other merchandise were released in stores across Japan just after midnight local time during a global rollout of the popular products. (Photo by Toru Hanai/Reuters)

Since Rodrigo Duterte became president last year, his brutal campaign against drugs has claimed thousands of lives. Human rights groups say he is guilty of crimes against humanity, yet that is scant comfort to those mourning loved ones. Here: Constantino de Juan’s seven children sit on a sofa that still bears the bullet hole from their father’s shooting. Juan was preparing a spaghetti dinner on his daughter’s birthday when he was killed. (Photo by James Whitlow Delano/Funded by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting/The Guardian)