Month: May 2019

Stéphane Gautier is one of those “extraordinary” creators that one comes across off the beaten track of contemporary art, yet who uses a language that is unusual and direct. His work is located on the fine line between design and art, and surprises us with its relevance and visual effectiveness. Beyond its forceful nature, however, Stéphane Gautier’s world opens up spaces for reflection that hold a mirror up to our childhood, with its memories and its universal dimension.

A designer and graphic artist, both by training and trade, Stéphane Gautier designs interiors that have a strong personality; original concepts that are born of his ideas and intuitions. From this practice, which has earned him recognition in the design world, he draws on a unique talent for deciphering symbols and images in his art, and for transforming them into a universal alphabet that everyone can perceive, in a direct and immediate link to the work.

Stéphane Gautier created his first picture at the age of 13, deciding to stick and paint his toys on a canvas. This first provocative gesture and artistic genesis, which, rediscovered years later, arouses emotion and recognition in all those who see the emotional objects that marked their past. There is no point in searching further for the reason behind the attachment that everyone brings to these works: they touch instinctively.

His creations are undoubtedly jubilant and display his expertise as much as his enthusiasm, moving from one medium to another, using all the possibilities of ready-made art to turn them into pictures, sculptures, surrealist or valuable objects… Everything, or almost everything, is shown here.

Understanding only comes as a second phase, however: the art of Stéphane Gautier is permanently shifting. By moving an object from one context to another, re-injecting the stereotypical symbols of childhood into an adult setting, he turns away from all traditional codes of art only to reappropriate them. And it is by way of this ironic distance that this intuitive creator invites us to a deeper consideration of the means of representation, of the effectiveness of advertising and propaganda, and finally of the sacralisation and misappropriation of childhood nostalgia.

Olivier Messas was born on the 22nd of January 1977, in Hô-Chi-Minh-City, Vietnam. At the age of two, he left for France with his family. They arrived in Marseilles and then moved to Lyon where the young boy spend his childhood and teenage years.His father was a house painter, this was a source of dreams for the small boy who believed his father to be… an artist! This was probably a sign of fate. As it is for most Asian families, the most important was to blend in easily and successfully, without any fuss, in a new land of which they did not speak the language or know the cultural codes. Luckily they quickly found friends and were helped in this transition. Olivier’s’ family then gave all they could to their children and allowed them the opportunity to fulfill their destiny. Olivier’s vision of life is strongly fueled and linked to his family values: a mixed culture, self-will, an opened mind, self respect and of the others, solidarity, spirituality but also to his cultural roots: Buddhism and French culture make a mixed family, thanks to his French grand parents from the region of the Vosges to whom Olivier will always be strongly linked.

He studied to be an accountant. However, he saw that his studies were not what he wished to do: he aspired to something else, something which he had carried with him for a long time. It was time for him to “become what one is” to quote Nietzsche. He left the comfort of his family home and began a second life. His character grew and his personality showed its’ true colours, more outlandish, more dashing. He studied anew in the universe of fashion and creation. He lived three years of daring activity and creativity from which his artistic personality came to grow. He moved to Paris and quickly found himself in the fashion “milieu”, a job which he loved and where he could bring the richness of his origins but also his dreams of colours, of shapes, of patterns. It was during many trips and journeys thanks to many encounters with much varied personalities and culture, that he found a new equilibrium between a certain spirituality and true pragmatism.

As time went by, he deepened his taste in painting and defined his style: bright colours, an inspiration derived from nature, strong straight lines on large canvases.

Olivier Messas is living between France and Germany. His artwork is exhibited in various galleries in Europe.

Update: Added origami projects

Kristol is an artist born in 1988. Born in Le Mans in Sarthe, he has for 10 years represented a very large number of artists, before embarking on his own adventure. Self-taught, he has learned a lot from the best contemporary sculptors. « I have been lucky enough to work for so many years with renowned sculptors. Today I want to share with others. In my mind, I have a lot of joy, color, and positivity »

After intense work, he released his sculpture PASCHAT. A completely imagined character who humanizes a tiger. « After all, who is the most human of us ? »

PASCHAT has a lot of panache. « He likes street, street art, fashion, travel, comics. You will love him as I love him. He is my alter ego »

Her works are now exhibited in many contemporary art exhibitions across France, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Canada. It is also followed by a large number of collectors.

Jérôme Mesnager was born on January 29, 1961 in Colmar. He entered the Boulle School in 1974 where he received training as a cabinetmaker, which he later taught at that school. In 1979, he took classes with Yves Got and Georges Pichard, teachers at the School of Applied Arts.

In 1982, Jérôme Mesnager is the co-founder of Zig-Zag, a group of young artists who invest in “zig-zag the jungle of cities” and revitalize abandoned places with a lot of graffiti. Jerome wanders in these spaces and, January 16, 1983, paints on the wall of the Little Belt his first white man, “symbol of light, strength and peace”. From now on, the white body appears throughout Paris, exploring factories and abandoned stations without forgetting cellars and catacombs … before going to conquer the whole world: Italy, Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, United States, Egypt, Japan, China, Russia… Today, the White Body is over twenty-five years old and several works already celebrate it.

In 1990, the artist left his parent’s house and moved to Paris. He showed works drawn on wooden fences at the Loft gallery, and published a catalog of these works. In 1995, he produced a large mural painting in the Ménilmontant street in Paris, “C’est nous les gars de Ménilmontant”.

Jerôme Mesnager is often associated with Nemo, a character with a black silhouette wearing a raincoat and a hat. He was part of the Paris street art scene, with artists such as Blek le rat, Miss Tic, Jef Aérosol, Némo, etc. and of the Free Figuration movement in the early 80s. In 2006, he produced a series of paintings inspired by art nouveau and art deco. The same year, he drew his white characters in the Hôtel des Academies et des Arts in Paris.

Speedy Graphito, or Olivier Rizzo, is a French painter who was born in Paris in 1961. He is one of the pioneers of the French Street Art movement alongside others like Jérôme Mesnager, Miss Tic and Blek le Rat. By imposing a powerful, innovative style in the early 1980s, Speedy influenced a generation of urban artists. Though his work has evolved considerably over the past few decades, he has become known and revered for his exploration of commercialism and references to pop culture images and icons.

After a very brief career as a graphic designer and art director, in 1983 Speedy joined the collective X-Moulinex, but left the following year. In 1985, he was on the first meeting of the graffiti and urban art movement in Bondy (France), on the VLP’s initiative, with Jef Aerosol, Miss Tic, SP 38, Epsylon Point, Blek le rat, Futura 2000, Nuklé-Art, Kim Prisu, Banlieue-Banlieue… By 1989 Speedy Graphito had participated in a number of group art exhibitions mostly in Paris, and by the late 1990s Speedy Graphito’s unique street art style was exhibited in art galleries across Europe.

His graffiti, executed with stencils or with a brush, incorporates schematic and dynamic characters approaching those of the Catalan designer Javier Mariscal or American artist Keith Haring. Other influences include America of the Fifties, cartoons and Manga and images in Maya culture. Particularly influenced by the iconography of Disney characters and video games, Speedy Graphito often turns a critical eye on our society, as his works feed off the collective memory of iconic imagery to create a new universal language.As an example, Speedy Graphito’s “Temptation 2011” features Disney’s Snow White enamored with the half-eaten logo of Macintosh Apple, creating a shrewd and satirical message about consumer seduction.

Speedy Graphito’s paintings, prints, and street art murals can be found worldwide. Already recognized in the international arena, Speedy Graphito’s Art is well known in France, England, USA, Belgium, India, Japan, Brazil, and Dubai, as well as major auction houses.

As a multi-disciplined Graphic Designer and Artist, Pantuso thrives at the intersection of design and creatively-inspired ideas. His career began in Chicago as a Graphic Designer for a design and marketing firm dedicated to local clients. In 1990, he founded Michael Pantuso Design which developed into an award-winning career that enabled him to build close alliances with advertising and branding agencies, corporate clients and business entrepreneurs. Today, he continue to work on corporate and branding assignments while developing and exhibiting my art internationally.

Philosophy on Work: “Somewhere between the pursuit of creative excellence and a deep personal need for honest expression, an artist will find their signature. I just recently found mine and it only took 54 years.”

Originally from Toulouse, Philippe Shangti started photography at the tender age of fourteen. Moving to Saint-Tropez allowed him to experiment more with his passion and ‘discover’ his artistic self. Shangti’s work is controversial in his aim at breaking down taboos and has become instantly recognizable amongst galleries and collectors since first exhibiting his photographs in his own restaurant.

The flawless detail, humorous undertones and lack of subtlety are classic hallmarks of Shangti’s work. It is surrounded by an exciting energetic buzz, with lashings of immoderation and glamour. The artist’s provocative and glamorous universe is the expression of his imagination, aimed to actively disturb minds. Through his series of photographic artworks like “Art vs Drugs”, “Luxury Overdose”, “No Prostitution Here” or “No Pollution Here” in 2017, Shangti manages to denounce serious causes by sublimating important messages.

Each new series is a tricky and bold challenge as it blows the whistle on immorality by making it attractive to see, and thus reaching a wide audience. His art comes in a variety of photographs, artistic concepts but also in limited edition sculptures. Constantly looking for new ideas and challenges, Shangti creates special works featuring sports personalities, collectors and their families. In addition, he collaborates with many luxury brands as part of the development of a range of products steeped with his art and his universe.

André Bielen was born on July 22nd, 1956 in Liège, Belgium. His painting today is the result of hard work and daily life, years of reflection on the possibilities of abstraction, on the most appropriate expression to his deep feelings.

Bielen’s work takes us into a universe which alone holds the keys. Each work offers a vision-shock, a powerful and always different facet of the universe. His fantastic world is a singular universe where dark and disturbing visions of our human condition get mixed with various degrees of detail. Always dependent on premonitory allegories, his work of art is sometimes confusing.

Bielen’s art is overflowing, galloping and booming, growing red of fire, flames and crimson lands, wings of wounded birds appearing in the dawn, revivals, liberators quartering and tearing heavens. An hypersensitive trip, way beyond usual language, inviting us at the heart of fantasy worlds.

Angelo Lembo was born in Syracuse, in Sicily. The tempo of his whole childhood was given by the sound of his mother’s sewing machine – a dressmaker. He was fascinated when looking at her turning a modest fabric scrap into a tent dress or a three-piece suit. He thought: “when I grow up, I will do this! I want to create something! I want to see unthinkable things come true in my hands!”

This is the inspration for his MIXARTOYS. He felt the desire to have fun, to take his kid’s creative spirit up again. He thought again about his toys and games. All those cartoons characters who inhabited his room. His parents were not rich enough to satisfy all demands, so he often got wrecked figurines from friends. And yet, he fixed them up, mixing the characters to offer them a new life. It was an extraordinary life, made of fantastic adventures.

Today, he took his dusty toys out of their boxes. They are warriors. They came across wars, ashes and other bad experiences they had to bear. They didn’t give in to digital attraction. They went through areas and just don’t care about fashion, money and religion. They are immortal creatures.
Lembo wishes to offer them the life they deserve: an XXL life. Suddenly, they go taller and taller and by turns, they become brutal, rebel, sweetheart, thanks to MIX magic. They are MIXARTOYS.

Each of them is a mix of seriousness, derision, mood and humour. In a certain way, they are our childhood keepers.