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Showing posts with label tattooed animals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tattooed animals. Show all posts

More Swine Art by Wim Delvoye : Tattooed Pigs & Pigskins (UPDATED PICS)



above: a dead stuffed pig featuring Wim Delvoye's tattoos

Above: Artist Wim Delvoye tattooing a live pig

My last post on artist Wim Delvoye, his pig farm and his tattooed pigs has received so much interest - as well as controversy- that I'm sure to stir up the pot by showing you where you can see more of his actual tattooed pigs (in this case, stuffed as opposed to live) as well as his framed tattooed pigskins.





Above: stuffed tattooed pigs from the exhibit at Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin


Animal lovers have made some comments about how cruel it is to ink live pigs, but from what information I have been able to find, it seems that pigs nerve endings are far less sensitive in their skin than our own and tattooing them does not cause pain as it does on human skin.

Critics should also know that artist Wim Delvoye is a vegetarian and owns his own pig farm.

The tattooed pig skin pieces below are at the Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin in Paris.








Tattooing pigs, live on his art farm, or stuffed and on exhibit are just a small part of this Belgian artists' unusual repertoire. See his site here.

See the skins and stuffed pigs at Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin by clicking here.


See the original post with many pics of tattooed swine as well as an interview with the artist here.


Now you can get your own Wim Delvoye Action Figure! Check this out!

Inked Oinkers: Tattooed Pigs by Wim Delvoye (UPDATED PICS)





Tattoos have become less of a taboo and far more mainstream in the past decade. Two reality shows are focused on tattoo artists, many magazines are published specifically about the craft and tons of products have hit the market that either sport tattoos or are tattoo-inspired, be them dishes, furniture or clothes. To see many available products with tattoos, real or otherwise, click here.



Belgian artist Wim Delvoye launched an Art Farm Pigs Growth Fund whereby people can invest in his swine farm outside Beijing in China. This farm, established in 2005, has nine boars and sows which are tattooed with a variety of designs created by Delvoye and three other tattooists in residence. “The pigs art fund will be an official Chinese company which I hope to launch in the next few weeks”, he says. “The new bonds and pig farm shares scheme make the mechanisms of the art market so transparent”, he added.


above: The gates to Wim Delvoye's Art Farm and some of the inked oinkers.

“This initiative is in its early stages”, said Mr Delvoye’s assistant Gianni Degryse. “We may set up a similar bond scheme for the pig farm. People may even be able to purchase one of the animals”.

A vegetarian who tattoos live pigs, in the name of art. Wim claims it's ‘Because they grow fast and they are so much better to tattoo than fish.’



above: Louise, a stuffed pig (yes, sorry folks, she's no longer with us) sporting her Louis Vuitton Tatts.

Below are live pigs with Wim's artwork permanently inked on their backs. Project and photos taken at Artfarm China in Yang Zhen, Shun Yi District Beijing, China.

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF WIM DELVOYE











above: Wim at work

Jonathan West of Vice Magazine asked Wim a few questions:

Vice: Why did you start tattooing pigs?

Wim: I started tattooing pig hides, which I’d get from the slaughterhouses, in 1994. It was only in 1997 that I started to work on live sedated pigs. I tattoo pigs because they grow fast and they are so much better to tattoo than fish. I tattoo them when they are young and I like the way the artwork stretches and distorts over time. Essentially, we invest in small tattoos and we harvest large paintings.

Have you ever tattooed a person?

Yes, of course. I have tattooed art critics, art dealers and art collectors, and lots of butts. I come across my needlework everywhere I go. Some designs I try for the first time on people and, if they work, I will surely re-create the tattoo on a pig.

To the close observer your work is laden with contradictions. For example, aren’t you a vegetarian?

Yes, I am a vegetarian. I am also very, very clean. I wash my hands like 100 times a day.



See a more recent post about his tattooed stuffed pigs and tattooed pigskins for sale here.



PART 2: Updated post on more Pig tattoos and pigskin art by Wim Delvoye




Wim Delvoye has done several interesting art projects. Tattooed Swine is just one of them.
Visit the artists site here.
To see more of his work, visit the Sperone Westwater Gallery by clicking here.

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