July is almost here and you know what that means? Game Of Thrones is coming back!
The highly-anticipated seventh season of the award-winning TV series will be premiering on HBO (Astro Channel 411/431) on 17 July, but before that, HBO has a really big surprise for you.
To celebrate the release of Season 7, HBO Asia has commissioned famed Russian artist and sculptor Salavat Fidai to produce 16 awesome Game Of Thrones-themed sculptures into the tips of fragile graphite pencils.
That's right - he carved Game Of Thrones sigils, the Iron Throne and even Daenerys' dragons on pencil tips!
The one-of-a-kind 'GAME OF THRONES A Pencil Microsculpture Exhibition by Salavat Fidai' event will be making its way to the LG2 Blue Concourse of Sunway Pyramid from 30 June all the way till 9 July.
The 16 pencils on display will include the microsculpture carvings of the Iron Throne, sigils from House Stark, House Targaryen, House Greyjoy, House Baratheon and House Lannister, as well as the Hand of the King pin.
Cersei’s new crown, Drogon the dragon, the Three Eyed Raven, the Night’s King, a White Walker, the Titan of Braavos, the Weirwood tree, and two swords - Brienne of Tarth’s Oathkeeper and Jon Snow’s Long Claw - will also be on display.
And here's the good news: entrance is free for the public!
Still thinking whether you want to brave the drive (and the parking situation at Sunway Pyramid) to the exhibition?
Well, we have compiled a couple of interesting facts about the Game Of Thrones microsculpture exhibition as well as the talented Salavat Fidai to help you make up your mind.
Trust us; you'll be begging your friends to join you at the exhibition once you're done with this article.
#1 Carving a single microsculpture can take up to a few weeks

#2 The exhibition has traveled around the world

In case you didn't know, Kuala Lumpur is not the first stop for Fidai's Game Of Thrones microsculpture exhibition. The delicate pencils last made their public appearance at Singapore's Scotts Square on 22 April. Prior to that, the pencils also made their way to Germany, England, the UAE and of course, the US of A -- twice! Oh, and a little birdie told us that Malaysia will be the final stop of the tour, so make sure you go see it.
#3 Salavat Fidai is actually a lawyer by profession

#4 He stumbled upon miniature carvings almost by chance

When he first started his career as an artist, he primarily focused on digital photography which involves taking still images of vegetables and fruits. In 2014, probably after he grew tired of taking photographs of food, he stumbled upon photographs of miniature sculptures made of pencil graphite while he was surfing the internet one day and decided to give it a go. The rest, they say, is history.
#5 Carving the microsculptures sometimes involves holding his breath

According to an article by Russia Beyond the Headlines, Fidai revealed that he sometimes have to hold his breath and work between his heartbeats because the graphite can be damaged easily. "Any vibration from the walls or the floor hinders the process," he told the website. He can't work at Starbucks lah, like that.
#6 He also paints - on sunflower seeds and rice grains!

Can't wait for the premiere of Game Of Thrones Season 7? Besides visiting the 'GAME OF THRONES A Pencil Microsculpture Exhibition by Salavat Fidai’, you can also binge watch Seasons 1-6 on Astro On Demand. Click on this link for more information.
The seventh season of the Game Of Thrones premieres the same time as the U.S. on Monday, July 17 at 9am exclusively on HBO (Astro Ch 411/431) with a same day primetime encore at 9pm. The series will also be available on On Demand and Astro Go.