Rema Raman is a 50-year-old medical researcher with an office job, but she’s flexible enough to do the splits. At age 43, Anna Kataoka was inactive because of an injury. Now, at 48, she does ...

When you think of contortionists, images of circus performers (perhaps a la Cirque du Soleil) likely come to mind. The bending, twisting, and stretching seem impossible — and never fail to mesmerize.

Fort Lauderdale artist Erin Barylski paints without a brush. Instead, she covers herself in paint and performs splits, contortions and yoga poses atop a large canvas. She calls what she does “Splits ...