June 14, 2019
Bulletin interne de l'Institut Pasteur
Meet the artist Kekli and check out his street art exhibition "Microscopique", produced for the Institut Pasteur
The Information Systems Department is pleased to present a street art exhibition by the artist Kekli entitled "Microscopique". The artist will be at the Institut Pasteur on June 20 to meet staff and discuss his work at the official opening.
In the 1990s, Kekli got involved in painting via hip-hop culture, starting with graffiti. Over time, a recurrent character began to develop in his work, known as "Boyo", with a yellow, oval-shaped head and a broad smile. Kekli draws, sticks, paints and stencils these grinning figures all over our towns and cities. The smiles he creates in the urban space are designed to elicit a response and a smile in turn from passers-by, to jolt them out of their humdrum routine, even if just for a few seconds.
The Information Systems Department decided to capitalize on this positive energy by inviting the artist to freshen up and modernize some staff areas – while keeping to the basic theme of science.
For this commission, Kekli created six new works, inspired by the infinitely small details of the living world, in which red blood cells, lymphocytes, neurons and bacteria observed under the microscope are all given a smile – the hallmark of the artist's urban work. The corridors and social space will house a selection of other works by the artist.
This exhibition can be seen in the entrance hall of the Information Systems Department (on the first floor of the CIS) until September 30, 2019. Come along and meet the artist over a relaxed buffet on Thursday June 20, 2019, from 12 noon.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact Julie Lê at julie.le@pasteur.fr.
More information about the artist:
