Cyril Kongo
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Cyril Kongo (also known as Kongo), (born 1969 as Cyril Phan in
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
, France) is a French painter and graffiti artist.


Biography

Born of a Vietnamese father and a French mother, Cyril Phan spent his early childhood in
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
, until the
fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Saigon, the capital of ...
in 1975. During his adolescence, he lived for several years in
Brazzaville Brazzaville (, kg, Kintamo, Nkuna, Kintambo, Ntamo, Mavula, Tandala, Mfwa, Mfua; Teke: ''M'fa'', ''Mfaa'', ''Mfa'', ''Mfoa''Roman Adrian Cybriwsky, ''Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture'', ABC-CLI ...
, in the
Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...
. Which inspired his artist name, Cyril Kongo. In 1986, he began tagging Parisian walls to set his mark. In 1988, he joined the ''MAC crew'', a group of Parisian graffiti artists with whom he painted from 1989 to 2001 monumental murals, particularly in the United States where he collaborated with New-York graffiti artists ''
TATS cru Tat or TAT may refer to: Geography *Tát, a Hungarian village *Tat Ali, an Ethiopian volcano People *Tat, a son and disciple of Hermes Trismegistus * Tiffani Amber Thiessen, initials T.A.T. * Tat Wood, a British author Arts, entertainment, and ...
''. The director ATN devotes a documentary, ''Trumac, de Paris à South-Bronx'' (''Trumac, from Paris to South-Bronx'') to these imposing works (including a wall about 50 meters long by 8 meters high). Kongo also appears in a 2004 film shot by documentary filmmaker Marc-Aurèle Vecchione ''Writers,'' ''20 ans de graffiti à Paris 1983-2003'' (''Writers, 20 years of graffiti in Paris, 1983-2003''). In 2002, with the ''Mac Crew'', Kongo launched ''Kosmopolite'', the first international graffiti festival in France, sponsored by the suburban city of
Bagnolet Bagnolet () is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. History On 1 January 1860, the city of Paris was enlarged by annexing neighboring communes. On that occasion, a small part of the commune o ...
where he resides. In 2011, ''Kosmopolite'' went worldwide with the ''Kosmopolite art tour'', a yearly event in major graffiti hubs : Amsterdam (Netherlands), Brussels (Belgium), Casablanca (Morocco), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Santiago (Chile), Jkakarta (Indonesia). Having reach its primary objective, dissociating graffiti art from its connotation of vandalism, ''Kosmopolite'' has been committed since 2011 to transmit its knowledge and the history of the movement by organizing free workshops of initiation to the urban arts, at first to young people and now also to adults. Thanks to the art studio of ''Kosmopolite'', called ''Narvaland'', Cyril Kongo, according to his formula "leaped out from the street to the studio" (see page 30 of the book devoted to this art). His works are presented in galleries and exhibitions. In early 2020, an exhibit on the roof of Paris la Défense Grande Arche is entirely devoted to Cyril Kongo.


Art

Kongo art is based on
lettering Lettering is an umbrella term that covers the art of drawing letters, instead of simply writing them. Lettering is considered an art form, where each letter in a phrase or quote acts as an illustration. Each letter is created with attention to d ...
, i.e. large colorful spray-painted letters, typical of the ''writing'' trend of urban art. During his ephemeral art period (1986-2000), Kongo painted huge frescoes, on walls and various other supports, in Paris and its suburbs, but also throughout the world. The only remaining traces of his works of this period are photos and films. From 2000 on, Kongo started painting of perennial surfaces. In 2009, two of his paintings were displayed in the ''
Grand Palais The Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées ( en, Great Palace of the Elysian Fields), commonly known as the Grand Palais (English: Great Palace), is a historic site, exhibition hall and museum complex located at the Champs-Élysées in the 8th arro ...
'' museum in Paris as part of the exhibition "''Tags in the Grand Palais''" organised by art collector Alain-Domininique Gallizia. In 2011, Claude Kunetz, a Parisian art dealer, organised Kongo's first solo exhibition "''De la rue jaillit la lumière''" (''Light springing from the street''). From then on, worldwide exhibitions have been numerous. The frontispiece of the ''Cité des Outre-mer'' in Paris is a mural by Kongo. With this recognition, prestige brands began to commission Kongo for the creation of luxury goods, including a silk scarf (a ''carré'') with
Hermès Hermès International S.A., or simply Hermès ( , ), is a French luxury design house established in 1837. It specializes in leather goods, lifestyle accessories, home furnishings, perfumery, jewelry, watches and ready-to-wear. Its logo, since ...
in 2011; a '' pâte de verre'' spray-paint can with crystal manufacturer Daum in 2016, and a watch with
Richard Mille Richard Mille is a Swiss luxury watch company founded in 2001 by Dominique Guenat and Richard Mille, and based in Les Breuleux, Switzerland. The brand specialises in ultra-high-end luxury watches. Company history Introduction After studying m ...
. In 2018, he is awarded the AD Great design award by
Architectural Digest ''Architectural Digest'' is an American monthly magazine founded in 1920. Its principal subjects are interior design and landscaping, rather than pure external architecture. The magazine is published by Condé Nast, which also publishes internati ...
for one of the enamel plates he painted for six of the French luxury brand La Cornue stoves (sold $3000,000). The same year, he is asked by
Karl Lagerfeld Karl Otto Lagerfeld (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, creative director, artist and photographer. He was known as the creative director of the French fashion house Chanel, a position held from 1983 ...
to design for the
Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chanel is ...
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
show. In 2021, Airbus partner with Cyril Kongo to design the cabin of their business jet ACJ TwoTwenty.


Books


''Kongo'', éditions Cercle d'art (2016)
(in English and in French). An art book entirely devoted to graffiti artist Cyril Kongo. * James T. Murray, Karla T. Murray,
Broken Windows : graffiti NYC
', Gingko press Inc. (2003). Revised edition in 2010. * Stéphane Corréard and Daëna Phan Van Song, ''Cyril Kongo'', (in English and in French), Narvaland editions, 2019. An art book entirely devoted to graffiti artist Cyril Kongo.


See also

*
Street art Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art. Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant graff ...
*
Graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...


References


External links



, Kongo page in Kosmopolite official site

Cyril Kongo official site
''Trumac''
film. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kongo, Cyril 1969 births Living people Artists from Toulouse French graffiti artists 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists 21st-century French painters 21st-century French male artists