Elito Circa, a Filipino artist, physically has blood on his hands, but he simply uses it to make art.
The 52-year-old creates canvas paintings using blood extracted from his own veins, which has garnered praise and criticism due to his unique choice of medium.
Circa experimented with other mediums, such as plums and tomatoes, growing up in a low-income environment with limited access to art tools. However, his love for utilizing blood started when he scraped himself as a small child.
Circa dabbed a white canvas with a paintbrush dipped in blood, saying, “Every time I got scratched, I would use my own blood since bloodstains are also difficult to remove.”