Franko B
It's really about creating a beautiful image and being in control...
Basically I'm painting with my blood because I wanted to work with blood but I could not work with somebody else's. I would not use animal blood and I would not work with fake blood because I'm not interested in theatre, so this was the only way I could accept to work. It's like the body's a canvas and your blood is the oil paint.
Franko B
Basically I'm painting with my blood because I wanted to work with blood but I could not work with somebody else's. I would not use animal blood and I would not work with fake blood because I'm not interested in theatre, so this was the only way I could accept to work. It's like the body's a canvas and your blood is the oil paint.
Franko B
Franko B is the leading UK based artist known for shedding blood in his performance art pieces, which attract large crowds to some of the world’s most prestigious galleries, such as Tate Modern. For Franco, the core of his art is being in control – so he paints with his blood. He began working with blood as a conscious decision, but he didn't want to work with anyone else's blood so he opted to use his own.
And he refuses to work with animal blood or fake blood because he's "not interested in theatre". In fact, he works with a doctor and feels the performance is very much like giving blood except he bleeds on a canvas. He sees his body as the ultimate canvas using his own blood as the paint.
And he refuses to work with animal blood or fake blood because he's "not interested in theatre". In fact, he works with a doctor and feels the performance is very much like giving blood except he bleeds on a canvas. He sees his body as the ultimate canvas using his own blood as the paint.
He loves the live performance environment – his art makes him "feel alive". He uses his extreme performance art as a vehicle to communicate concepts and ideas that he believes he can't do with more conventional art. He explores the powerlessness of life, of things we still don’t understand.
Performances
Oh Lover Boy, Beaconsfield Art Gallery, London, 2001
I Miss You, Tate Modern, London, 2003
Action 398, Klaus Engelhorn Gallery, Vienna, London
Still Life, National Review of Live Art, Glasgow, 2005
Oh Lover Boy, Beaconsfield Art Gallery, London, 2001
I Miss You, Tate Modern, London, 2003
Action 398, Klaus Engelhorn Gallery, Vienna, London
Still Life, National Review of Live Art, Glasgow, 2005