An eccentric Belgian artist who purposely chained himself to his artwork to show the “oppression” that artists face was finally freed Wednesday after unintentionally getting stuck for 19 days.
Mikes Poppe, an artist from Ostend, Belgium was trapped for 19 days in his artwork, as he tried to free himself by chiseling away the marble. However, his initial plan backfired and he ended up needing help to break the chain, according to the Guardian. The performance art project, titled “De Profundis,” was meant to show the dedication and “burden of history” when artists cannot escape from their work, according to his website.
The 438-hour video livestream showed Poppe completing everyday tasks of eating and sleeping while trying to chisel away at the stone that kept him trapped to his project. Viewers were able to freely watch the artist complete his tasks, until someone was finally called in to help cut him loose.
Artist who chained him self to block of marble as part of an installation has to be rescued after
438 hrs ! Read more at https://t.co/YKN1zK6aNR @muzee11 #MikesPoppe pic.twitter.com/7UjvQfu52u— Mark Hayes-Westall (@MarkGHWestall) December 1, 2017
WATCH:
“This block was symbolic of history, the history of art, which I am trying to free myself from. I discovered that this is not possible. It is a burden which I must always carry,” Poppe said after his release.
Send tips to gabrielle@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.