Meymac (2009) Mount Isa (2009) Authentic New Mexico (2007) My School Only Better (2007) Le Musée (2006) Paris (2006) Coming Soon (2006) Los Angeles (2004 – 2005) Planète magique (2003) IUFM (2002 – 2005) Cristal Union (2002) Serving Suggestions (2001)

Meymac (2009)

Meymac: a village in the Limousine region surrounded by countryside. As is often the case in the artist's work, two iconic objects that are implicitly connected are brought together to generate a residual effect. Like a direct reflection of the identity of its inhabitants, in a few strokes, the series displays the typology of local housing. It was created during a residency at the Contemporary Art Center, Abbaye Saint-André, Meymac in 2009.

Mount Isa (2009)

Mount Isa: a mining town in the north of Australia. A vast urban zone of basic, functional housing. Each photograph is associated with a simplified collage of an industrial construction on a decorative background. On one side are flat, horizontal houses with tin roofs. On the other is the residual signal that lends legitimacy to the mine. This combination results in an archetypal view of the city.

Authentic New Mexico (2007)

In reference to the "architectural decor" of the city of Santa Fe and the hijacking of Amerindian culture by tourism, a series of five panels, each made up of an urban landscape associated with a figurine. The geometric take on the Kachina doll (as an explicit appropriation) insidiously signals the utterly factice nature of the adobe style that even fast-food joints feel they have to adopt. An amused look.

My School Only Better (2007)

A series of five panels with a school as their starting point. On one side, a photograph, a point of view on a given space. On the other, a proposed equivalence in a different iconic form. To the left, what seems neutral and insignificant is revealed on the right as a clever functional and decorative compromise. The montage presents a real proposal for the decoration of the place shown.

Le Musée (2006)

Four photomontages captioned by four words. The confined and protective setting of the museum is used to showcase a virtually inlaid motif. The image is associated with a laconic adjective placed on a monochrome block to become a sort of flyer. Is the visual an event in itself?

Paris (2006)

A series of abstract signs inspired by a neighborhood in Paris. Each motif is assigned a site, a virtual inscription within the vast network of signs. The form integrates the urban fabric like a symbolic summary of its environment.

Coming Soon (2006)

A series conceived to announce the artist's presence prior to a residency and exhibition at the Lyon beaux-arts. Initially distributed as photocopies pasted to walls, it was edited as a series of 40 x 80 cm photos under diasec for the group exhibition "Les autres oeuvres" in 2010.

Los Angeles (2004 – 2005)

Twelve photomontages combined with a series of ready-made slogans, initially sent out as spam. The urban setting of Los Angeles, marked by the entertainment industry, seems entirely devoted to self-promotion and its inhabitants exploit this backdrop to cultivate their notoriety. Here, the silent motif replaces the billboard advertisement. The injunction, detached from its original referent, becomes an enigmatic proclamation of the artist's presence.

Planète magique (2003)

In the setting of an abandoned amusement park, an attempt to re-enchant the decor with paintings. By impregnation, the painted motif revives the site's magic. But in return, it is recharged and illuminated. The photograph bears witness.

IUFM (2002 – 2005)

Abstract paintings strongly reminiscent of signage integrate the architectural context of a public building. The enigmatic motif raises the question of the setting's usual function. Unless it is the brand image of the setting that ultimately imposes its meanings on the code?

Cristal Union (2002)

A series of photographs made for the Paris head office of a company that wanted to bring together - for and via the image - its different production sites. The familiarity of the motifs condenses and federates the range of contexts. The paintings incorporate rather than decorate the settings.

Serving Suggestions (2001)

Abstract paintings associated with tasteful design. Four proposals for interior arrangements along the lines of furniture showrooms. Should the decor be seen as a picture or the picture as an element of the decor?

 

"These photographs evoke the historical relations between painting and decorative arts since the beginnings of modernism. Also the links between abstract art and design, later towards 1950 - 1960, when the art world became more and more confronted with and permeable to mass commercial production."

Sylvie Couderc.