Members of the Castellers “Vila de Gracia” start forming their famous human tower called “castell” in the Barcelona neighborhood of Gracia, Catalonia, Spain on Sunday May 19 2013. A “castell” is a human tower traditionally built during festivals in many places in Catalonia. At these festivals, several "colles" or teams compete to build the most impressive towers they can. (Photo by Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press)

Vincent Yu is a multiple award winner who won Honorable Mention in the 2013 Photographer of the Year category for Pictures of the Year International. Photo: A statue of Hotei Buddha sits in the debris in the tsunami-destroyed town of Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northern Japan Friday, April 1, 2011. (Photo by Vincent Yu/AP Photo)

Rene Penia drives his VW Beetle 1995, locally called “Vocho”, through the streets of Monterrey April 22, 2015. The car was painted by a local artist to be part of an exhibition on the 1960s at the National History Museum in Monterrey where it was on display for five years. Pena bought the car for 25.000 Mexican Pesos (some USD 2,000 at that time) in 2013 during an auction and he then converted the car into an electrical vehicle. (Photo by Daniel Becerril/Reuters)

In 2013, the United Nations General Assembly officially designated November 19 as World Toilet Day, which is coordinated by UN-Water in collaboration with governments and partners. Here: An open-air toilet and a hot spring shower are seen in the middle of nowhere on the road to the Krafla geothermal power station and lava fields, near Reykjahlid and Lake Myvatn in northeastern Iceland, on August 19, 2012. (Photo by Mariana Suarez/AFP Photo)

A local miner wades through water as he walks down from a mountain in Benguet a day after Typhoon Haima struck northern Philippines, October 21, 2016. Super Typhoon Haima slammed into the northeastern Philippine coast late Wednesday with ferocious winds and rain that rekindled fears and memories from the catastrophe wrought by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. (Photo by Erik De Castro/Reuters)

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.

“Supanova Pop Culture Expo (Supanova) is a fan convention focusing on science fiction and fantasy film and TV, comic books, anime, gaming and collectables. It is held annually in the Australian cities of Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Terminator and Wolverine pose for photos during the National Cosplay Championships as part of the Supanova Pop Culture Expo at the Dome at Olympic Park on June 19, 2010 in Sydney, Australia. Cosplayers and comic book and sci-fi fans from across the state gathered to meet like-minded folk and attend guest panels with the stars of some of the popular television shows and publications of the genre. (Photo by Sergio Dionisio/Getty Images)