A closer look at the Monkey Bird duo's creative process
Can you tell us a little about yourself and your artistic practice?
We're Louis and Edouard, and together we've created MonkeyBird. We paint stencils, small or monumental, in minimalist hues, mainly in black, white and gold. Our aim is to create volume, depth and vibration through line work and density. We draw, cut and paint by hand. We are craftsmen and symbolists, and love to depict our totem animals, monkeys and birds, set in timeless landscapes of ruins and grandiose architecture.
What is your background and how did you get into design?
We met ten years ago at design school in Bordeaux. We hit it off and found common passions in art and music. We progressively worked together on the street, developing this work even before graduating, pooling our skills in graphic and industrial design.
In your day-to-day work as an artist, what inspires you? What triggers the creation of a work?
We are inspired by nature and art history. Architecture and its ornaments (sculptures, moldings, mosaics, stained glass) play an important role in our inspiration, because like our work, they are found in public spaces. We also love engravings, which inspire us in their line work and mastery of tools. Everything is a pretext to trigger a creation, as we have many interesting commissions and inspirations are omnipresent.
Can you explain how you go about creating your work? What are the different stages of creation?
First we create a sketch, then a fine-point drawing on a small format. Then we enlarge our image on software and have it printed to the desired scale; for murals, we print on large rolls of paper. Then we cut out the image by hand, using a scalpel. Then we paint, using acrylic paint and aerosol sprays. Working as a duo allows us to anticipate our organization and also to have a good dynamic when we're in action.