Liu Bolin, the Chinese artist known as “the invisible man” for using painted-on camouflage to blend into the backdrops of his photographs, has done it again by making himself and 22 others “disappear” into the red seats of a Beijing theatre.
Liu, who says the invisibility is a metaphor for the plight of ordinary people in modern society, spent hours motionless with the models as his team of painters painstakingly mimicked the colours and lines of the plush seats on their clothes, faces and hair.
In China, people have maintained the red-themed uniformity lifestyle for a long time
“In China, people have maintained the red-themed uniformity lifestyle for a long time, especially common people. They have even injected the uniformity of behaviour or thinking into their blood,” Liu said at the event on Thursday.
“I would like to question this issue through this work and tell the audience and people who have interest in my work that this issue has some problems.”
Also a sculptor, the 40-year-old artist has won international recognition with exhibitions in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the United States and Latin America.
