Vincent Michéa

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French-born visual artist Vincent Michéa has made his mark in the art industry as a master image manipulator. In creating photomontages, Michéa uses simple and common tools to construct sensitive images that are charged with extreme tensions. 

 

“I cut, I slice, I make incisions, I snip, I slash, I hack off, behead, I dismember… “-Vincent Michea

He is able to combine pieces of the past and present to create a new visual concept. With the intention to explore the notion of rewriting an image, Michéa uses the human figure and bright colours to cover a vibrant and uplifting African iconography.

 

Vincent Michéa's work is part of several international collections such as Agnès B, Paris (France), Saatchi Gallery, London (United Kingdom) and Mohamed VI Museum, Rabat (Morocco). He was also featured in Pangaea : New Art From Africa and Latin America at the Saatchi Gallery in London in 2014, and in Vivre !! La collection Agnès b. at the National Museum of History of Immigration in 2016.

 

With a background in graphic design, VincentMichéais bestknown for his paintings, silkscreens, and posters that referencepopular culture in Africa. In his recent collage series,Michéaengaged photographic portraits that were made in Dakarand Saint-Louis in 1986-1987 during the artist’s first trip toSenegal. The portraits depict friends, acquaintances, andmeetings made during the period. Michéa adds fragments on topof the photographs, cut from a series of small paintings in acrylicand oil made by the artist between 1995-1998. Inspired by thephotographs of Irvin Penn in Benin (formerly Dahomey) andCameroon in the 1960s,Michéa'scollages transform theindividualised portrait into a silhouette of abstract geometricforms. Shielding facial expressions, skin types, and clothing, thecharacters become universal archetypes. Michéa’scollages speakto the incessant overflow of visual information in the context ofmass media imagery, and he also points to the “backtracking” ofmemory of his overlapping mediums.Born in France, Vincent Michéa immigrated to Dakar in 1986 towork as a graphic designer. Michea's artworks have been shownin many solo and group exhibitions includingPangaea: New ArtFrom Africa and Latin Americaat Saatchi Gallery, London in 2014.Currently, his work is shown at the exhibitionMaking Africa: AContinent of Contemporary Designat Vitra Design Museum, Weilam Rhein in Germany. His works are included in many prestigiousprivate collections including Saatchi Gallery and Agnès B.

Vincent Michéa(France, b. 1963)With a background in graphic design, VincentMichéais bestknown for his paintings, silkscreens, and posters that referencepopular culture in Africa. In his recent collage series,Michéaengaged photographic portraits that were made in Dakarand Saint-Louis in 1986-1987 during the artist’s first trip toSenegal. The portraits depict friends, acquaintances, andmeetings made during the period. Michéa adds fragments on topof the photographs, cut from a series of small paintings in acrylicand oil made by the artist between 1995-1998. Inspired by thephotographs of Irvin Penn in Benin (formerly Dahomey) andCameroon in the 1960s,Michéa'scollages transform theindividualised portrait into a silhouette of abstract geometricforms. Shielding facial expressions, skin types, and clothing, thecharacters become universal archetypes. Michéa’scollages speakto the incessant overflow of visual information in the context ofmass media imagery, and he also points to the “backtracking” ofmemory of his overlapping mediums.Born in France, Vincent Michéa immigrated to Dakar in 1986 towork as a graphic designer. Michea's artworks have been shownin many solo and group exhibitions includingPangaea: New ArtFrom Africa and Latin Americaat Saatchi Gallery, London in 2014.Currently, his work is shown at the exhibitionMaking Africa: AContinent of Contemporary Designat Vitra Design Museum, Weilam Rhein in Germany. His works are included in many prestigiousprivate collections including Saatchi Gallery and Agnès B.