African Dandy | MÉDÉRIC TURAY
10 March – 15 April 2018 | Sitges – Barcelona
MÉDÉRIC TURAY | 5
Les fruits de Korotoumou - 2017 | 6
African Dandy - 2018 | 7
Réunion de la Sape au Village - 2018 |
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Extravaganza - 2018 |
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Dandy in Nature - 2018 |
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Face & Dress Code - 2018 | 11
Puppy Boss I - 2018 | 12
Puppy Boss II - 2018 | 13
Dandy mask I - 2018 | 14
Dandy mask II - 2018 | 15
Biography |
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Médéric Turay | African Dandy
MÉDÉRIC TURAY Born in 1979 in Ivory Coast Lives and works in Morocco It’s difficult to forget Médéric Turay’s colourfull art work which decorated the wall of Mohamed VI Modern & Contemporary Museum of Rabat (Morocco) in April 2017 during the cultural event “Africa in Capital”. After his exhibition in December 2017/January 2018 in Casablanca, Médéric Turay returns to Barcelona to present his new exhibition “African Dandy” in Out of Africa Gallery from March 10th through April 15th. The faces of his strange figures recall African masks as Turay’s style is influenced by other cultures and alternates between impressionism, cubism and graffiti. Beneath his look of a rapper, which is perhaps linked to his first career as a singer, Turay is really a poet at heart, one who followed a classical education in art. He’s inspired by great painters such as Picasso and Basquiat and in his latest works, you can detect the Mona Lisa, Venus or the Ginga queen, revisited in the eccentricity of Turay.
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This 39-year-old artist is in constant search of the perfect expression of his style, which he calls “Trace”, named for the cultural mix reflected in his work. This cultural mix, including his American influences and his African roots, is a combination of Western modernity and African tradition. He can create a Mona Lisa with the soul of an African. The tribal side, the “Art Brut” is one of his components. For him, art is experimental. To give life to his figures, he doesn’t just paint, he assembles and cuts and pastes and uses coffee grounds in his work. His inspirations are his daily life, the news and his immediate environment, all that he sees around him inspires his work. Africa and Morocco, where he’s living and working, inspire him enormously: the colours and the atmosphere around him.
The artist Médéric Turay (Ivory Coast)
Today, Médéric’s work hasn’t gone unrecognized and attracts collectors from all over the world. The exhibition “African Dandy” will be a festival of colours of happy dandy African people.
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Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Les fruits de Korotoumou | 2017 | 137cm H x 97cm W | Acrylic, oil pastels & coffee grounds on canvas
African Dandy | 2018 | 199cm H x 198cm W | Acrylic, oil pastels, coffee grounds and glitters on canvas
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Réunion de la Sape au Village | 2018 | 199cm H x 198cm W | Acrylic, oil pastels and coffee grounds on canvas
Extravaganza | 2018 | 199cm H x 199cm W | Acrylic, oil pastels and coffee grounds on canvas
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Dandy in Nature | 2018 | 199cm H x 150cm W | Acrylic, oil pastels, coffee grounds and glitters on canvas
Face & Dress Code | 2018 | 138cm H x 99cm W | Acrylic and oil pastels on canvas
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Puppy Boss I | 2018 | 150x150cm | Acrylic, oil pastels and coffee grounds on canvas
Puppy Boss II | 2018 | 150x150cm | Acrylic, oil pastels, coffee grounds and glitters on canvas
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Dandy mask I | 2018 | 86cm H x 60cm W x 16cm D | Oil on metal
Dandy mask II | 2018 | 77cm H x 60cm W x 13cm D – Oil on metal
Médéric Turay | African Dandy
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Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Solo exhibitions
Collective exhibitions
2018 | “African Dandy”, Out of Africa Gallery, Barcelona, Spain 2017 | “African Dreamer”, Gallery 38, Casablanca, Morocco 2016 | Collaboration with Donwahi Foundation & Abidjan Airport Salon VIP Marrakech Biennale, Morocco 2015 | Unlimited Morocco. BCK Gallery Marrakech, Morocco “Afric’Art is Beautiful” Cherkaoui Foundation, Tanger, Morocco 2014 | Gallery “Sulger Buel Lovell”, “Liberation unmasked”, London, UK Out of Africa Gallery “Traces of Humanity”, Barcelona, Spain 2013 | Centre Culturel Français, Ivory Coast 2012 | “Art and integration in Africa”, Sea Plaza, Dakar, Senegal 2010 | «Je viens de là», Cergy, France 2009 | “Croix Rouge”, Ivory Coast. 2006 | Hotel Sofitel « Miroir », Ivory Coast 2001 | Gallery “Art pluriel”, Ivory Coast 1999 | “L’Enfance” Embassy of Italy, Ivory Coast Art Gallery “Art’Essence“, Ivory Coast
2015 | Abidjan Art Festival (AAF) Donwahi Fondation, Ivory Coast N2N gallery Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates “6 artists one Africa”, Chelsea gallery, London, UK Galerie Zandi, Berlin, Germany “ Africa plural”, Out of Africa Gallery, Barcelona, Spain 2014 | Selection by “Saatchi Gallery”, London, UK Jack Bell “Gallery Art prize”, London, UK 2011 | ”Arkadi”, Centre Culturel Français, Abidjan, Ivory Coast Mairie ville, Abidjan, Ivory Coast “ART from Africa” Guishard solution, Washington DC, USA 2009 | ”Sifcom” Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
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Médéric Turay | African Dandy
Other experiences
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2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
ARTX, Lagos, Nigeria AKAA Fair, Paris, France AMREF Auction, New York, USA Street Art Project, Murcia Museum, Murcia, Spain Mural Mohamed VI Museum, Morocco “Rabat Afrique en Capitale”, Morocco Commissioned work for Nike and Chelsea, London, England Commissioned tramway, Morocco Commissioned train wagon, ONCF, Morocco Marrakech Biennale, Morocco AMREF Auction, New York, USA International Contemporary Art Fair, Lyon, Art3F, France Artist in residence, Fondation Donwahi, Ivory Coast Chiswick-auctions sales, London, UK Artist in residence Morocco Marrakech, Caravan Serai Artist in residence Morocco Tanger, Matisse room International Contemporary Art Fair Mulhouse/Art3F, France International Contemporary Art Fair Paris/Art3F, France International Contemporary Art Fair Bordeaux/Art3F, France International Contemporary Art Fair Nice /Art3F, France
2014 | 2013 |
Commissioned Mural, Sitges, Barcelona, Spain Auction Sales « Fondation Eboué Emanuel », Ivory Coast Auction sales Hôtel Golf for the “Fondation Didier Drogba” Auction sales «ONG grand coeur Yaya Touré» Auction sales «Save the Children» in collaboration with Moët & Chandon
Private collections Mr Charles Saatchi, London Mr Ethan Cohen, New York ”Collections” S.M. the King of Morocco Mohamed VI Cécilia Sarkozy, France Didier Drogba Foundation Fondation Donwahi, Ivory coast Private Germany Collection Private Spanish Collection Kyo Noir Collection, Italy Dubai Private Collection Museum Mohamed VI, Morrocco Museum Murcia, Spain
For enquiries please contact Sorella Acosta +34 618 356 351 - sorella@outofafricagallery.com Out of Africa Gallery - Carrer Nou 1 - 08870 Sitges - Barcelona - Spain www.outofafricagallery.com Out of Africa Gallery
@OutofAfrica_Art
@outofafricagallery