C215, is the moniker of Christian Guémy, a
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
street artist hailing from
Paris who has been described as "France's answer to
Banksy".
C215 primarily uses
stencils
Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface, by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object, to create a pattern or image on a surface, by allowing the pigment to reach ...
to produce his art. His first stencil work was put up in 2006, but he has been a graffiti artist for () over 20 years.
His work consists mainly of close up portraits of people. C215's subjects are typically those such as
beggars,
homeless people,
refugees
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution. , street kids and the
elderly
Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...
. The rationale behind this choice of subject is to draw attention to those that society has forgotten about.
Cats are another frequent subject of his work. C215 is a prolific street artist and has practiced his art in cities all over the world. His
stencil
Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface, by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object, to create a pattern or image on a surface, by allowing the pigment to reach ...
s may be seen in
Barcelona,
Amsterdam,
London,
Rome, Paris, Oslo, Colombo and different cities of
Morocco.
In October 2014, C215 visited
Valletta,
Malta because of his interest in Caravaggio as well as 17th-century religious architecture. He produced various examples of street art on
post boxes within the city, but
MaltaPost removed the artworks after a few days. Various people have criticized MaltaPost for removing the artworks, including the mayor of Valletta
Alexei Dingli
Alexey, Alexei, Alexie, Aleksei, or Aleksey (russian: Алексе́й ; bg, Алексей ) is a Russian and Bulgarian male first name deriving from the Greek ''Aléxios'' (), meaning "Defender", and thus of the same origin as the Latin Ale ...
.
In addition to his street work, C215 also produces commercial artwork for galleries on wood and canvas. C215 has to date done a number of solo gallery shows to promote his work. C215's most recent show is entitled 'Community Service', currently running in Paris.
Guémy's daughter Nina is a popular subject of his stencil art. She has also become a stencil artist in her own right.
Gallery
Ahmed Merabet par C215.jpg, Stencil in Paris in tribute to Ahmed Merabet, killed in the Charlie Hebdo shooting
C215 Brooklyn.jpg, Stencil in Brooklyn, New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
Djerba Er Riadh Street Art 18.JPG, Mural in Djerbahood
Djerbahood was a street art event in which artists from all over the world gathered in the village of Erriadh on the Tunisian island Djerba to create 250 mural paintings.
The project was established by the ''Itinerrance de Paris'' gallery in Ju ...
, Tunisia
HazardBerlinWallLille.png, Mural covering a Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...
segment in Lille OSC
Lille Olympique Sporting Club (), commonly referred to as LOSC, LOSC Lille or simply Lille, is a French professional football club based in Lille, Hauts-de-France that competes in Ligue 1, the top flight of French football. Lille has played its ...
training center
Further reading
*C215,Pyramyd Editions,
*C215, Critères Editions, 2010,
*Community Service, Critères Editions, 2011,
*Stencil History X, Editions C215, 2007,
*C215 Un THAIIS DAMASCENNAH, Castelvecchi Editore, 2013 (IT, EN),
References
External links
*
C215 official Flickr accountC215's street pieces on Street Art Londonstreet art boosts economy - Christian Guémy (C215) interview Interview with C215 on YouTubeInterview with C215 on Urbanartcore.euImages from C215's exhibition 'Stencil Bastards' at the Starkart Gallery in Zurich
{{DEFAULTSORT:C215 (Street Artist)
French graffiti artists
Artists from Paris