Sheng came to public attention in 1985 as a key member of the "New Art Movement" in China, which involved the participants painting their bodies or wrapping themselves in white cloth while running on the Great Wall, cycling, doing martial arts and other symbol-laden activities. Sheng left Beijing for Europe and in a ceremony marking his departure, he cut off the small finger of his left hand and buried it in a flower pot. Today, Sheng's works c ...