Theo Mercier is a young, French artist currently based in Mexico City. Working primarily in sculpture and photography, he often inventively incorporates found objects into his work. He arranges commonplace items in ways that can be grotesque or sexual, playing with the tension between alluring colors and textures and off-putting content.
His 2010 sculpture The Loner exemplifies this push-and-pull quality. Mercier’s large, squishy figure with googly eyes is made entirely of spaghetti. Once one gets past the sculpture’s cuteness, it’s impossible not to think about the logistical nightmare of keeping that thing preserved. Images of spaghetti left too long in the tupperware container start flooding one’s memory. In other pieces, Mercier submerges lunch meats and fake body parts in water at the beach or plants sex toys in still lifes. Across the board, he plays with viewers’ expectations and one can picture him laughing from behind the camera. Currently, Mercier has an exhibition on view at Arte Valori in Milan and is an artist-in-residence at Casa Maauad in Mexico City.
Collaboration with Thomas James
Collaboration with Thomas James
Collaboration with Thomas James
