American sculptor Michael Alfano has been sculpting for over fifteen years. A native of New York, he now lives and works in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. His major influences are Salvador Dali, Jo Davidson, and Jean-Antoine Houdon, as well as Buddhist, Taoist, Sufi and other eastern philosophy and literature. He first studied at the Art Students League of New York, with an emphasis on life-size sculpture from the model. His formal education continued at Boston University and was augmented by internships with several prominent sculptors.

Armless professional photographer Rusidah, 44, takes a photograph as she carries out camera maintenance on March 13, 2012 in Purworejo, Indonesia. Rusidah shoots weddings and parties and has a small studio at home in the village of Botorejo, Bayan District, Purworejo, Central Java where her husband and son also reside. She has been in the photography business for nearly 20 years. (Photo by Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images)

The Royal casket of King George Tupou V is carried towards the Royal Tombs during the State Funeral held for King George Tupou V at Mala'ekula on March 27, 2012 in Nuku'alofa, Tonga. King George died in Hong Kong on March 18th after six years as the King. (Photo by Sandra Mu/Getty Images)

More than 700 underwater images were submitted for the 2012 Annual Underwater Photography Contest, hosted by the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science. This year, for the first time, the University of Miami set up a “Fan Favorite” category for its underwater photo competition. Internet users could vote for their favorite among five pictures. Todd Aki's photo of a jellyfish took the prize, snaring 599 of the 1,221 votes cast. (Photo by Todd Aki)

These rare photos capture the Flight Deck (cockpit) of the Space Shuttle Endeavour, fully powered for one of the final times. Just a few weeks later, at 9:58am EDT on May 11, Endeavour was powered down for the final time in history. It was the last of the three space shuttles to have power. Below, other views show the mid-deck, gutted of its lockers and storage areas, and three final photos show the white room entrance in the Orbiter Processing Facility, signed by thousands over the years.

Greyhounds compete during a race at Santiago city, March 8, 2014. With over 100 years of history, greyhound racing attracts people mainly from rural areas of Santiago every weekend. Some dogs come from Argentina, the United States and Ireland and can develop a speed of up to 80 kilometers per hour on a straight running track of about 200 meters, according to organisers. Bets range from $2 to $1,000 per race, offering a livelihood for breeders and gamblers. (Photo by Ivan Alvarado/Reuters)

Japan is a country full of art. Much of this is housed in museums and galleries, but others are right under our feet. We speak, of Japan’s peculiar obsession with manhole covers. Almost anywhere in the country you can find manhole covers with spectacular grounds, each more beautiful and complex than the previous. In recent years, S. Morita photographer has traveled around Japan and leave us this great gathering on the beautiful and artistic Japanese manhole covers.

German pensioner Volker Kraft decorates an apple tree with Easter eggs in the garden of his summerhouse, in the eastern German town of Saalfeld, March 19, 2014. Each year since 1965 Volker and his wife Christa spend up to two weeks decorating the tree with their collection of 10,000 colourful hand-painted Easter eggs in time for Easter celebrations. (Photo by Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters)