“There's something fascinating about creating out of nothing, defining the rules and limits of an artwork yourself,” enthuses Mathieu Schmitt, a mixed-media artist who works out of the 109 studios in Nice and is represented by Catherine Issert's gallery. As a techie geek he might very well have spent his life writing code following his studies in telecommunications, networking and multimedia engineering. But lo and behold, in 2004 he applied to the Villa Arson art college, from which he then graduated in 2009. “It opened my eyes,” explains this cheerful pessimist whose artistic practice has since revolved around the mechanical and the technical. “I always incorporate an element I don't control, so there's a surprise for me. I love confronting a problem and trying to find the best response.” Tiny street lights illuminating dioramas depicting digitally-corrupted urban scenes, robots engaging in a fascinating dialogue like a dance of love... His work may be predicated on the concrete, logic and science, but he manipulates these – toys with them – so that an error, bug or glitch becomes a creative process in its own right, inviting us to adjust how we look.
Par Tanja Stojanov — Photographie Jean-Michel Sordello
Côteweb 2021, création de site Internet sur Nice