From stuffed elephants to picnics under power lines, Leipzig-born photographer Frank Herfort coaxes magical, colour-saturated tableaux from intriguing slices of everyday Russian life. Here: A lonely dog watches the mailboxes in a typical Moscow residential block. (Photo by by Frank Herfort/The Guardian)

A competitor scrambles in the mud under barbed wire during the Tough Guy Challenge 2009 at South Perton Farm on February 1, 2009 in Wolverhampton, England. The biannual event to raise cash for charity challenges thousands of international competitors to run through a gruelling set of 21 obstacles including water, fire and tunnels after a lengthy run at the start. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

A dog takes a rest under a destroyed house at a site where a landslide swept through a residential area at Asaminami ward in Hiroshima, western Japan, August 20, 2014. At least 36 people, including several children, were killed in Japan on Wednesday, when landslides triggered by torrential rain slammed into the outskirts of the western city of Hiroshima, and the toll could rise further, police said. Seven people were missing after a month's worth of rain fell overnight, loosening slopes already saturated by heavy rain over the past few weeks. (Photo by Toru Hanai/Reuters)

Weighing in at just under 6 pounds and at 22.6 inches long, the female pup arrived at Shedd in late October from Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, where she spent the first four weeks of her life being stabilized. The pup has been doing well since her arrival, receiving continual care behind the scenes of Shedd’s Abbott Oceanarium. Currently referred to as “Pup 681”, Shedd’s animal care and veterinarian teams are providing the continual, round-the-clock care she needs to thrive. Photos used with permisson from Shedd Aquarium. (Photo by Brenna Hernandez/AP Photo)

A laborer works at an upside-down house under construction at Fengjing Ancient Town, Jinshan District, south of Shanghai, March 17, 2014. Workers are putting the final touches on this eccentric tourist attraction built at the “China Folk Painting Village”. Furniture will also be placed upside down in the house, which is expected to open the public in April, according to local media. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Handout picture released by Telam showing the tarmac of the Pedro Palacios Avenue in Ramos Mejia, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, under which the channeled waters of the Maldonado stream flow, after it collapsed on April 8, 2014 leaving a 40-metre-long, 1.4-metre-deep hole. About 3000 people had to be evacuated in the Argentine provinces of Neuquen (soutwest), Catamarca (northwest), Santiago del estero (center) and Cordoba (center)due to the foods caused by heavy rain, official sources said. (Photo by Daniel Dabove/AFP Photo)

These illustrations are the work of an artist who has put a sinister spin on iconic animations in order to highlight the disturbing realities of domestic abuse. No Violence Against Women is a project by Italian artist and activist AleXsandro Palombo, 40, who is based in Milan. It forces its audience to confront the plight some women go through under the pretence of a happy relationship or family. (Photo by aleXsandro Palombo)