Pyotr Pavlensky said the
protest was his response to Russia's descent into a "police
state" and was timed to
coincide with Police Day, which Russia's law enforcement officials celebrated on Sunday.
Pavlensky has a history of self- harming art, including sewing his lips together to protest against the jail sentences given to members of Pussy Riot and wrapping himself in barbed wire outside a Russian government building, which he said symbolised "the existence of a person inside a repressive legal system".
Pavlensky is due to appear before a district court in Moscow on Monday over the stunt and could be jailed for up to 15 days.
