Invader (artist)
Encyclopedia
Invader is a French urban art
ist who pastes up characters from and inspired by the Space Invaders
game, made up of small coloured square mosaic tiles that form a space invader character murel. He does this in cities across the world, then documents this as an "Invasion", with books and maps of where to find each invader.
Invader started this project in 1998 with the invasion of Paris
– the city where he lives and the most invaded city to date – and then spread the invasion to 31 other cities in France (such as Montpellier
, Marseille
, Avignon
, Rennes
, Bordeaux
, Lille
, or Bastia
…). London
, Cologne
, Geneva
, Newcastle
, Rome
, Berlin
, Lausanne
, Barcelona
, Bonn
, Ljubljana
, Vienna
, Graz
, Amsterdam
, Bilbao
, Manchester
, Darlington
are among the 22 other European cities which have been invaded. In the world, Los Angeles
, New York City
, San Diego, Toronto
, Bangkok
, Tokyo
, Katmandu, Varanasi
, Melbourne
, Perth
and even Mombasa
are now invaded with his colourful characters in mosaic tiles.
The mosaics depict characters from Space Invaders and other video games from the early 1980s. The images in these games were made with fairly low-resolution
graphics, and are therefore suitable for reproduction as mosaics, with tiles representing the pixel
s. The tiles are difficult to damage and weather-resistant.
Invader installed his first mosaic in the mid 1990s in Paris. According to the artist, it was a scout, or sentinel, because it remained the only one for several years. The programme of installations began in earnest in 1998.
The locations for the mosaics are not random, but are chosen according to diverse criteria, which may be aesthetic, strategic or conceptual. Invader favours locations that are frequented by many people, but also likes some more hidden locations. In Montpellier
, the locations of mosaics were chosen so that, when placed on a map, they form an image of a giant space invader character.
The mosaics are half built in advance. When Invader arrives in a city he obtains a map and spends at least a week to install them. They are catalogued, pictured and Invader uses a map indicating their locations within the city. Typically, mosaics are located 10 to fifteen feet above the ground, and often on street corners in areas of high visibility.
One of the more prominent places where the mosaics have been installed is on the Hollywood Sign
. The first was placed on the letter D on December 31, 1999. During further trips to Los Angeles, Invader has placed mosaics on the 8 other letters of the sign.
Invader also works on another project that he titles "Rubikcubism", which consists making artworks made of Rubik's Cube
s. Invader has had solo exhibitions at art galleries in Paris
, Osaka
, Melbourne
, Los Angeles
, New York City
, and London
.
Most recently, Invader placed two of his iconic tile works on the World Of Wonder Storefront Gallery, located at 6650 Hollywood Blvd., in Hollywood, CA. for the 4th annual I Am 8 Bit group show.
Since 2000 Space Invader has shown in many galleries, art centers and museums, from the 6th Lyon contemporary art biennale (2001), the mama gallery in Rotterdam (2002), at the Paris based Magda Danysz Gallery
(2003), at the Borusan Center for Culture and Arts in Istanbul, Subliminal Projects in Los Angeles (2004), etc..
In 2010, he was one of the featured artists in the film Exit Through the Gift Shop
in which it states he is a cousin of Thierry Guetta
(Mr. Brainwash).
In 2011, he has taken part in the MoCA LA show at Geffen Contemporarya : "Art in the streets" curated by Jeffrey Deitch. He was the first artist arrested for taking part in the show.
As of July, 2011, no arrest has been made of either of the two French nationals who were detained by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) on suspicion of vandalism near MOCA's Little Tokyo gallery. Authorities believed one of the men detained only for suspicion was the French street artist Space Invader. Shortly after the two men were detained by LAPD, they were also released with no reported charges; however, authorities maintain one of the two men released was the artist "Invader".
Urban art
Urban art is a style of art that relates to cities and city life often done by artists who live in or have a passion for city life...
ist who pastes up characters from and inspired by the Space Invaders
Space Invaders
is an arcade video game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado, and released in 1978. It was originally manufactured and sold by Taito in Japan, and was later licensed for production in the United States by the Midway division of Bally. Space Invaders is one of the earliest shooting games and the aim is to...
game, made up of small coloured square mosaic tiles that form a space invader character murel. He does this in cities across the world, then documents this as an "Invasion", with books and maps of where to find each invader.
Invader started this project in 1998 with the invasion of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
– the city where he lives and the most invaded city to date – and then spread the invasion to 31 other cities in France (such as Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
, Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, Avignon
Avignon
Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
, Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
, Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
, Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
, or Bastia
Bastia
Bastia is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It is also the second-largest city in Corsica after Ajaccio and the capital of the department....
…). London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
, Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Bilbao
Bilbao
Bilbao ) is a Spanish municipality, capital of the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. With a population of 353,187 , it is the largest city of its autonomous community and the tenth largest in Spain...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Darlington
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, part of the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It lies on the small River Skerne, a tributary of the River Tees, not far from the main river. It is the main population centre in the borough, with a population of 97,838 as of 2001...
are among the 22 other European cities which have been invaded. In the world, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, San Diego, Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Katmandu, Varanasi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
and even Mombasa
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
are now invaded with his colourful characters in mosaic tiles.
Image resolution
Image resolution is an umbrella term that describes the detail an image holds. The term applies to raster digital images, film images, and other types of images. Higher resolution means more image detail....
graphics, and are therefore suitable for reproduction as mosaics, with tiles representing the pixel
Pixel
In digital imaging, a pixel, or pel, is a single point in a raster image, or the smallest addressable screen element in a display device; it is the smallest unit of picture that can be represented or controlled....
s. The tiles are difficult to damage and weather-resistant.
Invader installed his first mosaic in the mid 1990s in Paris. According to the artist, it was a scout, or sentinel, because it remained the only one for several years. The programme of installations began in earnest in 1998.
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
, the locations of mosaics were chosen so that, when placed on a map, they form an image of a giant space invader character.
The mosaics are half built in advance. When Invader arrives in a city he obtains a map and spends at least a week to install them. They are catalogued, pictured and Invader uses a map indicating their locations within the city. Typically, mosaics are located 10 to fifteen feet above the ground, and often on street corners in areas of high visibility.
One of the more prominent places where the mosaics have been installed is on the Hollywood Sign
Hollywood Sign
The Hollywood Sign is a landmark and American cultural icon in the Hollywood Hills area of Mount Lee, Santa Monica Mountains, in Los Angeles, California. The sign spells out the name of the area in and white letters. It was created as an advertisement in 1923, but garnered increasing recognition...
. The first was placed on the letter D on December 31, 1999. During further trips to Los Angeles, Invader has placed mosaics on the 8 other letters of the sign.
Invader also works on another project that he titles "Rubikcubism", which consists making artworks made of Rubik's Cube
Rubik's Cube
Rubik's Cube is a 3-D mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik.Originally called the "Magic Cube", the puzzle was licensed by Rubik to be sold by Ideal Toy Corp. in 1980 and won the German Game of the Year special award for Best Puzzle that...
s. Invader has had solo exhibitions at art galleries in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Most recently, Invader placed two of his iconic tile works on the World Of Wonder Storefront Gallery, located at 6650 Hollywood Blvd., in Hollywood, CA. for the 4th annual I Am 8 Bit group show.
Since 2000 Space Invader has shown in many galleries, art centers and museums, from the 6th Lyon contemporary art biennale (2001), the mama gallery in Rotterdam (2002), at the Paris based Magda Danysz Gallery
Magda Danysz Gallery
Magda Danysz is a Paris based art dealer. Magda Danysz started in the art business in the early 90, when she opened her first art space in 1991 as she was still a student. She has studied at the ESSEC French business school and made student exchanges at the Osaka International University in 1995...
(2003), at the Borusan Center for Culture and Arts in Istanbul, Subliminal Projects in Los Angeles (2004), etc..
In 2010, he was one of the featured artists in the film Exit Through the Gift Shop
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Guetta happily accepts the assignment, adopting the name "Mr. Brainwash", putting up street art in the city and six months later, re-mortgaging his business to afford renting copious equipment and a complete production team to create pieces of art under his supervision...
in which it states he is a cousin of Thierry Guetta
Mr. Brainwash
Mr. Brainwash is a pseudonym for Thierry Guetta. According to the Banksy directed film Exit Through the Gift Shop, Guetta who now lives in Los Angeles, California, having been a proprietor of a clothing store and videographer who evolved into a street artist and gallery artist, influenced by the...
(Mr. Brainwash).
In 2011, he has taken part in the MoCA LA show at Geffen Contemporarya : "Art in the streets" curated by Jeffrey Deitch. He was the first artist arrested for taking part in the show.
As of July, 2011, no arrest has been made of either of the two French nationals who were detained by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) on suspicion of vandalism near MOCA's Little Tokyo gallery. Authorities believed one of the men detained only for suspicion was the French street artist Space Invader. Shortly after the two men were detained by LAPD, they were also released with no reported charges; however, authorities maintain one of the two men released was the artist "Invader".
Further reading
- Street Logos, Tristan Manco, Thames & Hudson, 2004, ISBN 0-500-28469-5
- L'Invasion de Paris, Invader, Editions Franck Slama, 2003, ISBN 2952019924
- Invasion Los Angeles, Invader, Editions Franck Slama, 2004, ISBN 2952019940
- Invasion in the UK, Invader, Editions Franck Slama, 2007, EAN 9782952019972
External links
- space-invaders.com
- Interview with the Artist (Video)
- More than 660 Hi-res photos + maps (Paris, Avignon, Côte d'Azur, ...)
- LA Weekly article
- Information at Galerie Patricia Dorfmann
- Photos of many of Invader's mosaics.
- Pictures of 900 invaders in the parisian streets and suburbs
- An interview in russian online magazine (in Russian)
- interview on outsideleft.com
- Sample Art + Examples of Invader Editions
- Interactive Map of Geotagged Space Invaders
- Space Invader in Miami