Exquisite Corpse

Exquisite corpse drawings are created in a similar manner, but with pictures instead of text - often depicting a human figure divided up into head, torso, legs, and feet each by a different artist and in a different style.

The drawing method is the way I prefer to play. Of course, last time we played, there was oil paint involved, which made everything messy. I stuck with black marker, making my section of the corpse more minimalist.

To do this, fold a long piece of paper over 3 or 4 or 5 times, then on the top section draw something resembling a head, maybe try and get the neck section to go a little bit onto the next folded piece, then fold it around such that the next section (below your just drawn head) is visible, pass it along. Repeat. Then hopefully when you unfold the thing you have a full body.

fun.

The Exquisite Corpse is also the name of an e-zine at corpse.org.

Exquisite Corpse is Poppy Z. Brite's third novel. It is described as "two serial killers looking for love in New Orleans".

It appears to be inspired by Jeffrey Dahmer. Certainly Andrew's escape seems inspired by a quotation Brite puts between the title page and the story proper:

"Records of the 1994 autopsy of serial killer Jeffey Dahmer reveal that officials kept Dahmer's body shackled at the feet during the entire procedure, 'such was the fear of this man', according to pathologist Robert Huntington." (Milwaukee Journal - AP, 17 March, 1995.)

In a nutshell, the plot is as follows (spoilers here - I am going to tell you how it ends):

Andrew Compton is a HIV-positive, necrophiliac serial killer doing life in Lower Slaughter prison, England. He fakes death in an Indian-mystic kind of way, escapes from the autopsy and catches a plane to America. There, in New Orleans, he meets Jay Byrne, a sadistic, cannibalistic serial killer. They become lovers, and Jay attempts to introduce Andrew to cannibalism. Andrew convinces Jay to kill Tran Vinh, a young Vietnamese drug dealer who is besotted with Jay. Before this can happen, Luke Ransom, Tran's HIV-positive, heroin-addicted, permanently angry ex-lover shows up, although he fails to rescue Tran due to Jay's bribing the police. On his second attempt, Luke shows up after Jay and Andrew have killed Tran, and kills Jay in return. The book ends with Jay and Tran rotting, Luke shooting up and Andrew on a plane having a Jay sandwich. Got that?

Not her best book, but certainly her most disturbing¹, and extremely well-written.

Exquisite Corpse was published in England in 1997 by Phoenix, and my copy cost £5.99. The cover art shows a blindfolded male head and shoulders.