The Pain Artist

Chinese artist He Yunchang believes in suffering for his art. His performance pieces have included:

Having one of his ribs removed so that he could wear it as a necklace.
Having a doctor cut a one meter gash down the side of his body, without anesthesia.
Encasing himself in a cube of quick-setting concrete for 24 hours.
Trying to "cut a river in half" by suspending himself above it from a crane while holding a knife in the water, as blood dripped from cuts in his arms.
Painting the fingernails and toenails of 10 mannequins with his own blood.
Staring at 10,000 watt bulbs to damage his eyesight
Burning his clothes while wearing them.

Art critic Judith Neilson explains:

“He Yunchang is an alchemist of pain... He Yunchang evidently believes that pain and extreme discomfort, deliberately planned and willingly undergone, have a transcendent quality — and that it is this quality that raises mere action to the level of art. [His performances] serve as silent rebukes to contemporary Chinese society, where people undergo all kinds of suffering for money precisely because they see money as the ultimate protection against suffering."

[via The Rakyat Post]

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Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: Alex - Sun May 11, 2014
Category: Performance Art

Comments

Sounds like an "artist" that I can't wait for his ultimate performance and be done with hearing about.

Posted by BrokeDad in Midwest US on 05/11/14 at 11:09 AM

I can't help but remember my Mom saying, " It's all fun and games till someone gets set on fire!". Then it becomes Art! :lol: :coolsmile:

Posted by Tyrusguy on 05/11/14 at 12:54 PM

I didn't know Cenobites were real.

Posted by venomlash on 05/11/14 at 04:27 PM

Just a Masochist who has found his niche in life.

Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 05/11/14 at 09:48 PM

If he's happy, who am I to say different?

Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 05/12/14 at 12:47 AM

I don't mind him suffering for his art, but I don't intend to suffer for his art myself.
Anyway, unlike most performance "artists", he at least has a valid point with the reason behind his choice of performance, even if the performance itself is not one I find particularly artistic.

Posted by Richard Bos on 05/13/14 at 08:36 AM

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