Mur Nomade invited Beijing-based French artist Niko de La Faye to present the M2B kinetic sculpture and light performance in Hong Kong’s unique streetscape during Hong Kong ArtWalk 2014. It is a one-night street event from 4:30pm to 11:30pm, with special shadow theatre performance at 6:30pm, 7:30pm, 8:30pm, 9:30pm and 10:30pm.

With M2B, Niko de La Faye created a representation of the Universe placed on a traditional Chinese tricycle. M2B is a piece of poetry in the midst of the traffic. It does not create anything but its own show. In spring 2012 and spring 2013, the artist rode M2B for 80 days, along a 3,400- kilometer route from Beijing to Hong Kong, as an itinerant performance.

This time, Niko de La Faye will set up the M2B Shadow Theatre on the ArtWalk route, on Shin Hing Street, off Hollywood Road. Every hour, a 12-minute performance will be offered: the sculpture, covered in a white screen, will transform into an abstract shadow theatre. The artist will share with passing-by audiences the many stories of his 80-day ride on M2B.

In Spring 2014, M2B will resume its wanderings, this time in France. The M2B performance during Hong Kong Artwalk 2014 will be its final act in Asia before it departs to Europe to take part in several festivals.

About the artist:

Niko de La Faye is a French artist, born in 1978. After his studies, he moved to San Francisco, where he designed costumes and choreographed shows for a couple of years. Since 2008, the artist has been sharing his time between France and China. He currently lives and works in Beijing.

Niko de La Faye’s work is about geometry, primary colours and interaction with people. He creates kinetic sculptures, installations, photographs and costumes. Performance is the underlying component of all the art forms he explores, as part of the creative process or in the presentation of the end result.

Visages is a photographic series of very graphic portraits. To complete it, Niko de La Faye worked with seventy-five models over two years. With his kinetic sculptures, the artist wishes to create mechanical interpretations of his environment. Moreover the artist recently directed several shadow theatre shows in Beijing.

-Mur Nomade

© Photo by Raphaël Fournier
Image courtesy of the artist and Mur Nomade