The renowned French graffiti artist talks passion, spontaneity, and the common ground between him and luxury house, Hermès
You may have already glimpsed his work in the form of vibrant silk scarves in Hermès's fall/winter 2011 collection, or perhaps even adorning a stretch of hoarding at Scotts Square in the Orchard Road precinct as of a few weeks ago. The man in question is none other than French graffiti artist, Cyril Phan, better known by his pseudonym, Kongo. A self-taught painter who has gained an international reputation for his unique artistic identity, Kongo is part of an artist collective that traverses the world to spread the seeds of creativity, and is co-founder of the International Graffiti Festival.
In Singapore for the first time last month to create some traffic-stopping (and totally legal) graffiti art as part of the Voilah! French Festival, Kongo will be back in town again this weekend for the official opening of the new Hermès store at Scotts Square from December 9 to 11. He will be in-store to create graffiti name tags for all visitors, and you can also have your picture taken in front of a larger-than-life scarf at the "Graff Hermès" scarf atelier.
It may seem incongruous that the two should meet - street art, so often painted with a veil of illicitness, and a high-end luxury brand whose only alleged crime is making such beautiful objects that we are wont to covet. Yet on the contrary, the artist himself reveals that they share more similarities that may show on the surface, and the synergy between the two is further attested to as a portion of proceeds from the Graff Hermès scarf which Kongo designed will go towards supporting young budding graffiti artists under his Kosmopolis collective.
Asia Tatler finds out more about the collaboration and what makes this energetic artist tick.