The Inking of the Swine

Wim Delvoye tattoos pigs, sows and swine. Sponging their pink flesh clean of muck and feces, the artist sketches designs upon the flanks of the 24 pigs kept at his farm in rural China. One pig might be dedicated to classic American designs and logos, like Mr. Clean and Walt Disney. Another might be inked with Russian prison tattoos. Another might be covered in Louis Vitton's logo. And so on.

His artistic message is vague: as the pigs grow in size, the tattoos stretch and fade, which he thinks is a visual reminder of the end effect of human aspiration.

"Tattooing somehow expresses a lot of heavy wishes, like Jesus Christ, or liberty,[...] or you're happy because you're in love; big events in life, big ideas in life, big ambitions, big wishes, projections...all these things are very human, they're human wishes and projections, and to put them on a pig, makes these wishes, these desires, so ridiculous."

Uh huh. We'll forgive the muddled message: it can not detract from the coolness of tattooing sows.

Artfarm China [Official Site]