On October 14th, French artists 100TAUR and Hisham Echafaki will debut new works in their two-person exhibition, “Lusus Naturae” in London. Borrowing their title from a Latin phrase that describes any creature or specimen that defies classification, the exhibit will include a series of paintings, drawings and three-dimensional works that depict “freaks of nature”. Their works feature fantastical hybrid creatures alongside some of the world’s most bizarre members of fauna. Both 100TAUR’s portrayals of mythical monsters in their dark world and Echafaki’s intricate, pattern-filled works explore the human fascination with oddities or monstrosities along with our fragile relation with the nature. Although different in their styles and aesthetics, both artists are heavily influenced by nature, its beauty and perfection. 100TAUR’s work is halfway between innocence and horror. In his graffiti murals, installations, drawings, paintings, engraving and taxidermy sculptures, his colorful surrealist imagery is rich in narrative. Hisham Echafaki plays with intricate, repetitive patterns found in nature, especially insects, and is commenting on the fragile balance between the mankind and the wild life. For this show, he created a series of three-dimensional paintings using a technique of painting layers of resin. Through this time consuming process, the he is presenting 3D bugs as fragile taxidermy insects. “Lusus Naturae” will be on view for two days in a Victorian-style pop-up location at 94 Leonard Street, London, EC2A 4RH.
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