A few years ago I had a show in Tokyo called Onaji Umi. It was mostly surf and beach paintings from France and Japan. I liked the idea of kindred spirits gathering around their shared ocean.

　The sea has a massive impact in my personal and creative life, from my family history in Britanny and its ties to the fishing ecosystem, to my love for surfing. Every year when I come to Japan, I make sure that I go visit my friends in Kamakura. Yusuke Hanai, Hi-Dutch and Sekizawa. Yusuke and Hi-dutch are very talented and generous artists that I met through a gallery opening and with whom I bonded around surfing. They’re always so kind to me and take care of me from the hotel to the sea. They have a cool calm attitude that offers a refreshing breath from Tokyo, especially during an intense and short work trip. Sekizawa san is an incredible surf shaper that has kindly shaped surfboards for me. The first one immortalized my friendship with Yusuke and Hi-dutch in a drawing made by Yusuke. Sekizawa has an amazing shaping hut atop the mountain, with an incredible view dominated by the ocean. Sitting down chatting with them whilst he prepares matcha is always one of my fondest moments here.

　Since moving here, I’ve been actively preparing for a big installation at the french Pavillon for the Osaka Expo 2025. Invited by the Tara Foundation, who help protect and explore the ocean. The foundation does an incredible job of conducting marine biology research, and fosters pioneering expeditions aimed at preserving this essential ecosystem. They have a boat that brings scientists and artists on board to conduct research, and a brand new station destined for investigations in the Arctic. For this installation, I decided to create a giant hybrid creature halfway between a boat and a marine mammal. Its body covered in drawings and marks telling the long history of civilisation’s relationship to the ocean and how the many myths and legends help us talk about bigger issues. Starting with Greek mythology, it tries to cover the globe and its many cultures with a long take on Japanese Yokai and Kaijus. The final part sees the creation of new myths to discuss contemporary issues such as over-fishing, pollution, global warming, etc.

　With the help of Nanzuka gallery, we drove to Tochigi to visit our friends at AD Japan who have been producing all my sculptures in Japan since my installation at Ginza Six. I love working with them as they’re very patient and kind. There’s a family atmosphere and we’re always taken out for fun evenings at the local Izakaya with the team. The boss is a very charismatic character with an amazing banana hairstyle and a contagious laugh. It’s nice to experience being with locals outside of the big city and to see a different side of Japan.

　Diving into japanese mythology brought graphic excitement that matched the colorful contemporary imagery I have loved experiencing everyday. From pirate skeletons to Kappas and Umibōzu, I loved drawing all these characters and tapping into the diverse iconography associated with them. Hopefully the resulting installation will do it justice and visitors from all over the world will enjoy finding out about this diverse cast of creatures and the many stories they tell.