A Round-up of Paris Graffiti Events

Text: Rooksana Hossenally
Image: Galerie VitryJam

The graffiti movement’s success last year, kick-started by the event: ‘TAG at the Grand Palais’, closely followed by the Fondation Cartier’s ‘Born in the Streets’ (‘Né dans la Rue’)  is now underway, for 2024.  Here's what’s on until March.

Currently at the Galerie Bailly Contemporain, catch the Photo/Graff: Photos of Subway Art 70’s and 80’s exhibition in the last few days before it ends tomorrow, Saturday. The gallery teams up with Taxie Gallery in the 7th and puts two of the movement’s most famous photographers’, Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant, works on show.

At Galerie Ligne 13, stencil graffiti is back in town with an exhibition of some of EZP’s best  collaborations with the likes of Comer and Rizot; big names that are still active on the scene in Paris. Strongly inspired by Miss-Tic, Mesnager and Gérard Schlosser, EZP has fun with stencils, where strong contrasts and messages of peace and beauty merge. EZP and Friends: artcore stencils and graffiti will be running until February 20th.

Ex-graffiti artist, Christophe Compiano's Emergency is showing at Galerie du Centre in the 4th until February 27th. His works speak of environmental issues to violence through a colourful and critical eye.

Next on the list of events not to miss, is the first exhibition in the country of the exceptionally talented Belgian graffiti artist with an unusual liking for huge animals and their intestines. Galerie Itinerrance in Paris’s 13th district with the collaboration of Stencil History X, gives free reign to ROA until February 28th. An exhibition that stands out from the rest, ROA’s work is not easily forgotten. As his work in the streets of New York, Berlin, London, Paris and Warsaw shows, he is a prolific graffiti artist, arguably one of the top of our time due to his originality and the sheer size of his works.

If the above still leaves you hungry for more, then pencil in a date this Valentine’s with the stencil artists at the third edition of the Jam Group Show at Galerie VitryJam in Vitry-sur-Seine (just outside Paris). With 600 m² of exhibition space, new works by several artists will be on show as well as characteristic works of the movement by the godfathers of stencil art. For a full line-up see the Galerie VitryJam website.

Also on this weekend, for three days only (13th,14th and 15th February), another big event will be causing a bit of a stir at GrandeDame Palais de Tokyo in the 16th arrondissiment. Using a selection of the works featured in last year’s pioneering exhibition organised by Alain-Dominique Gallizia, ‘TAG at the Grand Palais’, he now turns in his attention to the Palais de Tokyo where he has organised the event Tag and graffiti which is set to be a symbol for non-violence captured in the exhibition motto: ‘Don’t touch my mate’ (Ne touche pas à mon pote). The exhibition is free and the auction will be taking place on Monday from 7pm. All benefits will go to the SOS RACISM association.

Having already started earlier on this month and running until 12th March, Galerie Since.Upian in the 10th presents Lasers & Crystals by Matt W. Moore (MWM). Of a similar style to street artist, Dalek, MWM is an artist who uses strong lines and colour inherited from a graphic design background. Although of a different style to what one might expect from a graffiti artist, all his works are spray painted and have a quality that is reminiscent of his graffiti days when was better known as ‘Reone’.

Coming up in March (9th-27th) artist renowned for his stencil graffiti, Epsylon, is participating in the exhibition ARTMEUTE at the Galerie Ligne 13 in the Batignolles (17th district), ‘La Meute’ being the group of emerging graffiti artists that have arisen via Epsylon’s studio.  On show will also be works by his ‘disciples’ or ‘graduates’ of the Epsylon Point studio such as Spliff Gachette, Pixal Parazit, Maest and guests.  Inspired by the abstract expressionists Kandinsky and Pollock, Epsylon sprayed his first stencils in the 80s. His main focus, in a nutshell, is on the working class, international conflict and eroticism.