24 HOURS OF FASHION, ART AND FOOD WITH PULL&BEAR AND THOMAS LÉLU IN PARIS
editor ELIANA CASA
What better place than Paris to celebrate love and the launch of Pull&Bear’s capsule collection with French artist Thomas Lélu, just in time for Valentine’s Day? On a 24-hour escapade to the city of (fashion) lovers, I stopped at the Pull&Bear pop-up store in the iconic Le Marais district and had a quick chat with the artist and visionary himself.
For the occasion, the store turned into a conceptual café where Thomas’s handwritten phrases filled the room, and not in a metaphorical way. Its playful artworks were displayed on textiles, walls, and of course on the new Pull&Bear stylish capsule collection, including t-shirts, hoodies, caps, and even iphone covers. I slowly made my way in the space, with my trusty oat matcha in one hand, and the most delicious madeleine in the other, all kindly offered by Café Cortado. Caught by the smell of the beautiful bouquets of daisies which surrounded every corner of the room, the team began assembling the floor-based DJ set (unusual but very cool), for what would turn out to be a beautiful performance by Taiwanese-Canadian DJ GROOVYHUH, exploring genres like amapiano, afrobeats, alté, kuduro and more.
The moment had arrived. Thomas and I stepped away from the noise to discuss everything from art and fashion to career and life philosophy.
How did your career evolve into becoming an artist?
At the beginning, I wanted to be a painter, and be like Francis Bacon. When I was very young, like 14 years old, I had my first exhibition showcasing my first paintings. After highschool, I started the Art Decorative school in Paris, and then I discovered the Applied Arts course, which included advertising, and communication. It was new to me so I decided to continue in this direction. I was an art director for many years, and then I published a few books. A gallery was excited about me, and proposed to me to carry my first exhibition. Though, when I was very very young, I wanted to be a stuntman.
Your work often incorporates fashion imagery, like memes with brands such as Hermès, Gucci, Cartier, and many more. What drew you to fashion as a medium for your art, and how do you decide which fashion references to incorporate?
In my work, there is irony, and in my first book, there were a lot of wordplays. One of my first canvas was inspired by Surrealism, Dada. People in fashion thought it was amazing. A lot of these wordplays rhymed with the names of fashion celebrities or brands, like ‘Celine Dior’. Fashion brands started to repost my fashion memes via Instagram. It’s been a spontaneous process so far. For me it’s fun. It’s not cynical, rather a game with the public.
Your works often carry an irreverent tone, especially when you replaced celebrities' phones with philosophy books in their selfies. What messages were you trying to convey with these pieces, and how did you want the audience to perceive them?
The message behind these pieces might appear slightly ambiguous. But it’s easier than it seems: just grab a book, and read it. Stop scrolling with your Iphone.
Irony plays a big role in your work, and your collaboration with Pull&Bear feels playful. What inspired the capsule collection, and what everyday message do you think we should all remind ourselves of?
It feels like the perfect collaboration to me. It’s a project with the public, I call it a collaboration project. I work with real people, and when I meet them, we open a dialogue, and from that moment, we create stories together. It’s all about that for me.
I have a lot of sentences in my mind, but, ‘Today I Did Nothing’ encapsulates my approach to life. Take life easy. I love the metaphor about the surfer — you are on the wave, and if the wave is bigger than you, instead of panicking, you need to play along with it. Play it cool. Don’t be so serious, everything is going to be okay. There is another sentence, that I love from Johnny Cash, that says: “It’s just a ride”, so take it easy.
You’ve worked across platforms, from installations to Instagram, and now the Pull&Bear pop-up in Le Marais showcases your art in a conceptual café. How does the environment contribute in shaping your message?
Instagram is like a window for me, a platform that gives me the chance to interface with many different people. It’s essential to communicate with people every day, and keep my collaborative projects alive, like this collaboration with Pull&Bear. It’s an opportunity to stay curious and open. The relationship with my audience is ‘give and take’. I give to the public, and in return, the public gives me something back.
A new perspective was revealed to me, when covid happened. Everyone was alone at home and I began to write handwritten phrases like the ones you are seeing today on this capsule collection. It was difficult to stay at home, and to distract myself, I read a book called ‘You Must Change Your Life’, by Peter Sloterdijk. To do so, he suggested doing small exercises daily, like cardio for example. You need to find your tool, your media. You have to find that one thing, and repeat it everyday. So, I decided to write a text everyday, post it and share it online. This is kind of how everything started. Create everyday. It’s a meeting with your inner self.
How do you balance humor and deeper meaning in your work?
It’s a difficult question. I think it's all about balance. How is that saying, life is 50% percent Namasté and 50% fuck off, you know. You don’t need to choose, you need to surf. That’s why I love clothing and fashion, it’s about the style. It’s not about the ‘why’, instead, the ‘how’.
Thank you so much.
Merci.
The capsule collection is now live both online and in stores. The Pull&Bear flagship on Rue Rivoli is marking the launch with a special window display and an exclusive activation designed just for the occasion.
