2008
Wim Delvoye, “Tim”
A tattoo on Tim Steiner’s back was sold to collector Rik Reinking for €150,000. Steiner received a third of the price and shows his back in museums.
← Inspect the lots · Live art project · Berlin · 2026Bidding 30 Nov – 6 Dec 2026 · worldwide
Skin
Auction
People in Berlin put a spot of their own skin up for auction. Whoever bids highest decides what will be tattooed there, for good.
Who does a body belong to once someone has paid for it?
Register to bid
Registered bidders see the lots 24 h before everyone else
How it works
- The lots
5–7 people aged 21+ are selected through an open call. Each one sets the spot on the body, its size, a starting price and what must never be tattooed there.
- Seven days of bidding
Bidding runs online from Monday 30 November to Sunday 6 December 2026. Anyone can bid, from any country. The last hour, 19:00–20:00 Berlin time on 6 December, runs live.
- The winner chooses the image
The highest bidder sends a design within 3 days. The participant has 24 hours to accept or refuse it. Nothing is paid before a yes.
- The tattoo
Slava tattoos the design in her Berlin studio. The participant keeps the full winning bid. The winner adds €30 for materials and receives the documentation.
A lot looks like this
Lot 00Example
- Placement
- Left ankle
- Size
- up to 6 × 6 cm
- Starting bid
- € 80
- Never
- faces of real people, hate symbols, logos
- Seller
- public, with name and photo
The real lots are being selected now. They are published here and on Instagram at @iconicyzma.
What the winner gets
The right to decide what a living person carries on their skin for the rest of their life, within the limits that person set.
Full documentation of the work: photos and video of the session, the healed tattoo, and a certificate signed by the participant and the artist. The winner may attend the session in Berlin or stay anonymous.
Precedents
2024
Flatz, “To Risk One’s Own Skin”
Twelve pieces of the artist’s tattooed skin were to be auctioned by Christie’s in Munich. A collector bought all of them before the sale.
Register to bid
Send one short message with your name and country. Bidding runs 30 November – 6 December 2026, and registered bidders see the lots 24 hours before they go public.
Emailslavasolen@gmail.com
BID Name: Country: Instagram (optional):
Rules
- Participants are 21 or older and set their own limits. A design outside those limits is refused.
- The participant can refuse any design without giving a reason. The winner can then send a new one within 3 days.
- If the winner does not pay within 48 hours after a yes, the lot goes to the next highest bid.
- Only registered bidders can bid. Each bid is confirmed by direct message.
- All tattoos are done in Berlin, in a professional tattoo studio, with single-use sterile equipment.
The artist
Slava (Vladislava Ivanova) is a Berlin-based artist and tattoo artist with a background in ecology and science-art. Her work deals with the body, digital privacy and surveillance.
Art: @iconicyzma · Tattoo: @yzmatattoo · slavasolen@gmail.com