‘Flame of revolutions’: Russian emigre artist Pavlensky sets fire to Bank of France
Overnight into Monday, Pyotr Pavlensky, a well-known Russian live art performer, set the building of the bank of France on fire. He was arrested by the Paris police at about 4 am.
Photos of Pavlensky near the burning bank appeared on Twitter on Monday morning. The artist reportedly aimed at famnning the ‘world flame of revolutions’.
The building was damaged; at the moment, the bank is closed.
Pavlensky is known for his controversial performances ‘Threat’ (setting fire to the doors of Russia’s Federal Security Service office in Moscow), ‘Separation’ (cutting off a flap of his ear), ‘Stitch’ (sewing up his mouth), ‘Fixation’ (nailing his scrotum to paving stones in Red Square) and ‘Freedom’ (setting fire to tyres in St. Petersburg – in solidarity with Kyiv’s Maidan).
In May 2017, Pyotr Pavlensky was granted political asylum in France.
