A Flor de Piel / Overexposed Emotions
David Catá—a Spanish artist—is becoming well known for his thread-based art.
For his pieces he sews thread and needle through the skin of his hands and palm to create a beautiful portrait that has a unique organic feeling.
It has to hurt.
Cata sees the project as a sort of diary.
“Somehow, every person we meet marks us.
Their image projects on ours”
Catá uses the medium to sew people who are important to him onto him.
Removing them are just as important as sewing them onto his hand in the first place. The portraits leave behind a trace of themselves on his skin that remains for weeks just like how knowing these people impacted who he is in life.
Watch the video below (if you can stomach it) of how he removes the pieces afterwards.
Mamá sewed onto his palm
Abuela Perpetua by David Catá
“By sewing in the palm of my hand, I portrait the faces of people who have left their mark on my life; family, friends, partners, teachers… Their lives have been interwoven with mine to build my history, which will end when I ran out of sheets to write. The body is the canvas of our life. It reflects our environment and experiences.”
Abuelo Catá
Mi Hermano Javi by David Catá
Mi primer profesor de fotografia Manuel Sendon
If you’re not too squemish, you can watch how he does it in the video below!
See more of his work below and then see in full size on David Catá’s Online Portfolio
This has to be one of the most bizarre things I’ve seen. I have no idea why someone would do this to themselves, and yes I did read the article. Maybe DRAW with pencil on paper instead?