Xu Zhen

Xu Zhen (b. 1977, lives and works in Shanghai) came to prominence at the 49. Biennale di Venezia with Rainbow, 1998, a visceral video performance of his back being slapped, turning red, with hand marks visible but never the hands. Further actions including sawing off the summit of Mount Everest equivalent to his own height, 8,848-1.86, 2005, invading neighboring countries with radio-controlled tanks, ships and helicopters, 18 Days, 2006, the controversial The Starving of sudan, 2008, and Untitled, 2009, a vast house of poker cards in the form of the Potala Palace. With essays by David Elliott, Philippe Pirotte and Christopher Moore and an interview with Li Zhenhua, this is the first monograph concentrating on Xu Zhen's practice, focuses on his early career until 2009, when he subsumed his identity within the corporate-collective "MadeIn" (in Chinese "No Roof"), and with a postscript on MadeIn's recent adoption of a new brand—"Xu Zhen."