THE FRENCH TOUCH By KONGO
Presented by Amanda Wei Gallery
Shop B, Lower Ground Floor, Wilson House,19-27 Wyndham Street, Central,Hong Kong
WHO IS KONGO ? The painting of Cyril Kongo is marked by his experiences and his vision of life. After spending more than thirty years painting on the street and working for graffiti to be perceived differently, the artist is now looking for new challenges. Kongo aims to make his painting more complex and to leave his comfort zone. His multicultural influences and his curiosity have forged his identity and artistic style. Urban artist above all; Kongo is part of the first generation of Parisian graffiti artists. Committed and supportive, he has contributed greatly to the defense of graffiti as a school of painting in its own right. Indeed when the painter speaks of his discipline he evokes the technical and visual complexities and describes it as a real savoirfaire. Calligraphic abstraction, as well as its fluid and spontaneous line, gives it a very singular identity. The artist gives us his most intimate reflections through his painting. In each of his works we observe coded messages of blessings, abundance of peace and light through the use of numbers or alphabets. His painting is a reflection of himself it’s generous, colorful and constantly expanding.
Kongo never ceases to reinvent itself from its travels and its research on its own limits. His art evolves from his encounters. Thus, when he crossed the path of the prestigious Hermès house, the artist knew how to make this union unprecedented by revisiting the classic silk square for the autumnwinter 2011-2012 collection. From this project a real passion for ancestral savoir-faire was born in him. The quest for the perfect line and the ideal technique reminds him of course his relationship with graffiti. The idea of going to the discovery of unknown worlds and unusual alliances motivates and inspires it. In this dynamic he works with the Daum crystal factory with whom he makes colorful crystal spray cans. This sculpture is at the same time the witness of two worlds in the antipodes and a hymn to the journey and the urban culture from which the painter is coming from. Always in search of the unexpected Kongo and the famous watchmaker Richard Mille shares the vision of a work never yet realized, a high complication watch painted from the inside. This jewel of technology marks the history of haute horlogerie as the achievement accomplished is grandiose.
His works are present in numerous collections, such as the French architect Alain-Dominique Gallizia, a patron of art graffiti and, in particular, organizer of the exhibition “The TAG at the Grand Palais” in 2009. Major figure in international graffiti, Kongo, does not seek to remove graffiti from the street, to change the ephemeral aspect or the connotations it conveys, but to present it differently, as a precious object. He uses his pictorial vocabulary in order to go beyond the limits of technique and to link the different disciplines. This demands an impeccable finish in the execution of the works, combined with the choice of materials and partners. Daëna Phan Van Song
Stop! In The Name of Love 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
Straight from 2017 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
Extension 2017 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
Black Diamond 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
C'ĂŠtait un Vendredi 130x97cm Mixed media canvas
Les copains d’abord 130x97cm Mixed media canvas
Purple Rain 100x200cm Mixed media canvas
Solution 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
La formule 130x210cm Mixed media canvas
Parigot 200x200cm Mixed media canvas
Love is this Answer 50x50x30cm Bronze Sculpture
Love is the movement 140x100cm Mixed media canvas
Hommage à l’homme en rouge 160x130cm Mixed media canvas
Chiré Douvan 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
Hommage à Mondrian 85x123.5cm Mixed media canvas
Monde virtuel 162x97 cm Mixed media canvas
Melting Pote 97x130cm Mixed media canvas
Social Media 60x120cm Mixed media canvas
Lanmou pou zot 100x100cm Mixed media canvas
EXPOSITIONS / EXHIBITIONS 2017 Love is the answer [solo-show] Arthema Galerie, Bruxelles, Belgique. Kongo chez Barnes [solo-show] Paris, France. Les éphémères de Kongo [solo-show] Rue François Premier Paris, France. Vos papiers s’il vous plait [solo-show] La Fabrique Royale Paris, France. Applications [solo-show] GalerieTaglialatella Paris, France. 2016 Publication de la monographie, Editions Cercle d’art. Power of link. Arthema Galerie, Bruxelles, Belgique. Off the wall D. Gallery, Jakarta, Indonésie. Off the wall exposition collective au musée national de Jakarta, Indonésie. 2015 Mr colorful [solo-show]. Galerie Matignon, Paris. 2014 Matignon présente «Kongo» [solo-show]. Galerie Matignon, Paris. 2013 A Stroll in Paris with Kongo [solo-show]. D. Gallery, Jakarta, Indonésie J’adore l’art de rue [solo-show]. Ming art gallery, Taipei, Taiwan. 2a Bienal Internacional Graffiti Fine Art, MuBE, São Paulo, Brésil. 2012 From Paris with Love [solo-show]. Galerie 28th Février, Singapour. One Love, Central Plaza, Hong Kong. Ne pas effacer, Galerie Wallworks, Paris. Do Not Erase, G-Dot Art Space, Pékin, Chine. Bon baiser de Paris [solo-show]. Déjà vu gallery, Shanghai, Chine. Off The Wall Paris, Galerie Wallworks, Paris. 2011 Off The Wall, Artspace @ Helutrans, Singapour. L’art du graffiti - 40 ans de pressionnisme, Grimaldi Forum, Monaco.
Graff in the City, Opera Gallery, Paris. De la rue jaillit la couleur [solo-show]. Galerie Wallworks, Paris. Infamous, The Space Gallery, Hong Kong. 2010 Pick it Up, Dragon I, Hong Kong. Macrew, Galerie Quality Street, Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis. The Oven’s Hot, The Bakery Gallery, New York, Etats-Unis. Kosmo Art Tour, Bruxelles, Belgique. Propaganda Revolution, M1nt, Hong Kong. Wall Street Arts, Salihara Gallery, Jakarta, Indonésie. 2009 Street Heart, Tokyo Art Club, Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Le TAG au Grand Palais - Collection Gallizia, Grand Palais, Paris. MAC Hexagonade, Pol’N, Nantes. Thomas Lélu_Works with Kongo, Galerie Dominique Fiat, Paris. FIAC, Cour Carrée du Louvre, Galerie Dominique Fiat, Paris. 2008 Infusion, Bochum, Allemagne. MAC Sous le granit de 68, Kosmopolite, Bagnolet, Hip Hop Dôme, Bondy, Seine-Saint-Denis. 2007 Graffiti & Consumption, Biennale bi-city Hong Kong - Shenzhen, Chine. Moleskine Citynotebook exhibition, Hong Kong. 2006 Moleskine Citynotebook exhibition, Tokyo, Japon. 2003 MAC crew, Groeninge Museum, Bruges, Belgique. 2002 Ombre et lumière, Taxie Gallery, Paris. 2000 Calli-graff, La Laiterie, Centre Européen Jeune Création, Strasbourg.
Photography by Aurielle Tchetchenigbo Pramith Lokuge Laurent SĂŠgrĂŠtier Atelier 80