tom de pekin

Tom de Pekin's official birth certificate is the publication in 2000 of Rêve au Cul by CBO éditions. This little silkscreen pamphlet takes a pornogay approach to the main tenets of Maoist propaganda. Other publications in the same eroticoludic vein followed, including Tom de Savoie and Des Godes et des couleurs. Conceived from collages reworked on computer, these seminal books were later adapted into animated short films, and delighted numerous international festivals throughout the 2000s.

The release in 2011 of the book Haldernablou by United Dead Artists reveals a darker side to his work. This collection of drawings illustrating an early play by Alfred Jarry opened up new perspectives for Tom de Pekin, who abandoned Photoshop for graphite and gouache. The film Haldernablou Quadriflore continues his exploration of this 1894 text, one of the first French-language theatrical works to speak frankly of homosexual desire.
In 2013, Tom de Pekin illustrated the controversial poster for Alain Guiraudie's film L'inconnu du Lac. The same year saw the publication of Le lac sombre a bewitching series of drawings featuring naked - but still hooded - men playing with their bodies in the midst of obscure nature. It lays the foundations for the universe the artist would later develop. As the series progressed, the black and white gradually faded, giving way to a flamboyant palette of colors that we now see in his most recent works.

photo credit : d.r.
tom de pekin