This story broke in July, but given the excellence of this portrait, it would be wrong of us not to bring to those of you who have missed it. A shanghai-based artist named Phil Akashi has painted a portrait of Nelson Mandela with 27,000 punches. Akashi printed the Chinese character for freedom on to a boxing glove, and punched it on to the canvass to paint the portrait.

Akashi said:

This artwork exemplifies Nelson Mandela’s 27 years of incarceration but also symbolize his lifelong brave stand for equality. Nelson Mandela is an extraordinary artist of peace.He sacrificed his own freedom to fight for the freedom of others and therefore represents a fantastic source of inspiration for the entire world.

The artwork is housed in the Shanghai Graffiti Park.

[Source: Designboom, YouTube]