Motte's stimulating paradoxes

Playing on the unexpected, both emotionally and intellectually, Motte's singularity is based on an immediate visual shock behind which his critical and amused gaze imposes itself.

Motte's art attracts by the sometimes astonishing multiplicity of his pictorial experiments, vivid and rhythmic, as much as by the themes he chooses to tackle. From simple everyday subjects to complex societal questions, his works, beyond the aesthetic emotion born of a captivating composition - between characters, motifs, colors, vibrations... - reveal a tragi-comic vision where the absurd is never far away, that of an artist who turns his sharp eye on life, the world and his fellow human beings. Touching as a presence, his pictorial expression invites both contemplation and reflection. The "VHS" museum exhibition at the Centre d'Art Contemporain Jean Prouvé in Issoire bears witness to this.

How did this exhibition in an art center come about?
Through meetings with certain teams in the city, which led to various projects, notably a commission from the Centre Jean Prouvé. The institution, formerly a convent for Benedictine nuns and later a commercial court, wanted to be more clearly identified as a contemporary art center. So I created the Art is Essential fresco on the outside wall of the building. On this occasion, I met Églantine Pacquot, head of the Arts & Heritage department, who, in line with the city's policy, wanted to open up to Urban Art, which pushes back the boundaries of contemporary art. And when she suggested this exhibition project two years ago, I obviously accepted.

Did you have carte blanche?
Absolutely. In fact, this is the first time an artist has been allowed to work on the walls, although I did promise to help the technical services get the place back into shape[laughs].

What theme did you choose to develop?
VHS, an acronym for Very High Sensitivity, refers to video cassettes and speaks of an era, the 1980s-1990s, through its aesthetics, references and image processing. I was particularly interested in the video alterations to analog tapes inherent in this medium.

Some pieces deal with subjects that fascinate, amuse, challenge or shock me, and on which I take a sometimes humorous, sometimes grating, even cynical look.

motte

Is this an evolution of your Glitch series?
Indeed it is. But whereas Glitch belongs more to the digital era, here I confront it with analog alterations. On canvas, using a mix of aerosol, acrylic and ink, I transcribe, with my usual pictorial treatment, the physical degradations associated with VHS media: deformations, alterations, image bugs... right down to the shifting of RGB layers.

How did you go about it?
Basically, I take a black-and-white drawing, put it in color and then alter it on the computer. I shift the RGB layers according to a chosen frequency, before transforming these colors, looking for popier, more garish shades: reds become pink, turquoise greens... In this way, I depart from the pure synthesis of colors, in order to gain in legibility and find a fine balance. I then reproduce on canvas the digital sketch that was used exclusively for this research.

You've also worked with typography...
Coming from a graffiti background, working with letters and typography in general is in my DNA. So, for some pieces, the words support the message, others are an entry point or a key to understanding. By working with impactful typography, in correlation with the graphic elements - characters, motifs, background, etc. - the idea is to offer viewers food for thought beyond the aesthetics of the visuals on offer, so that they can see beyond the pretty girl in the bathing suit.

How many pieces will you be exhibiting?
Over twenty paintings and digigraphs. I'll also be showing one of the pieces I created with the Vangart embroidery publishing house. It's fascinating work, given my background as a colorist and stylist. I had no hesitation in going to their fabric bank to choose four fabrics, each of which would be used to create five pieces. To spice things up, I added a silkscreen print, with a different gradient, on each fabric. After the embroidery work, I'll enhance these 20 pieces by hand... unique in the end. Finally, a quadriptych measuring 8 x 2 meters, created in situ, will open the exhibition. It will reflect the theme and series presented. This work of art will immediately immerse the visitor in the scenography I've imagined, while giving rhythm to the exhibition.

How long have you been working on this exhibition?
Since January 2023, when I carried out the initial research and sketches and began to think about the scenography, taking into account the constraints of the site, the Jean Prouvé art center being a listed building, housing the permanent collection[Kim en Joong's works, editor's note] which must remain visible. I also imagined the monumental quadriptych to resonate with this collection and my artistic proposal.

Through the theme of the exhibition, you tackle different subjects...
Indeed, some of the pieces deal with subjects that fascinate, amuse, challenge or shock me, and on which I take a sometimes humorous, sometimes grating, even cynical view, without pretending to give lessons! Others are more intimate, revealing moments of my personal experience.

What amuses and fascinates you?
The "madness" around social networks, for example, including the race for audience in Notoriety Scavenge, where a roadside hitchhiker searches for 100k followers; Instagram certification in Data Taming, where a tamer attempts to submit the coveted badge; the antics of influencers and their unboxings in Influencer....

And what shocks you most?
The ecology preachers I came across this summer in Corsica, between the one who prides himself on having installed a tri-compost at home but who takes his 4 x 4 to reach a small wild cove, and the one who is worried about global warming but who gets roasted in the sun. More shocking are the "Voisins Vigilants" signs that are springing up all over France. This big black eye on a yellow background reminds me of fascist militias - and we know where that led - or, closer to home, rednecks, those white, armed and racist Americans. On the web, this has translated into this rather sympathetic-looking neighbor watching over her neighbors wearing an SS cap.

Work on the absurd?
Absolutely! The absurdity of current human thought interests me.

And do you take risks, as you do with each of your series?
I don't like to get stuck in a rut, and I like a challenge. However, there is a logic to my work, as the series are not disconnected from each other. They feed off each other in both form and content, opening up new perspectives and giving rise to new ideas. Some of these ideas, such as volume and sculpture, I've been keeping in reserve for several years, due to lack of time.

What kind of set design do you have in mind?
Lots of surprises around the theme!

Can you give us some clues without giving everything away?
CRT TV, RGB colorimetry system, garish colors...[laughs].

Although this is a museum exhibition, can the works be purchased?
Yes, but the museum does not handle sales. The museum can provide a price list to visitors, who, if interested, can contact Galerie Christiane Vallé.

How do you feel on the eve of this event?
Like a kid unwrapping his Christmas presents, I'm extremely happy to be presenting my work in a contemporary art center, a further step and a gratifying recognition as a Street Art artist. This exhibition proves that mentalities are changing and that some people at the head of cultural institutions no longer regard us as pestiferous. Visitors be the judge...

To see
"VHS"
December 15, 2023 to March 15, 2024
Tuesday to Sunday, 2pm to 6pm, Saturday 10am to 12:30pm and 2pm to 6pm
Centre d'art Jean-Prouvé
19 rue du Palais 63500 Issoire
issoire.fr/centre-dart-jean-prouve

Motte : motte-artist.com
Instagram: @mottemicmac