Lot  228 Ravenel Autumn Auction 2023 Taipei

Ravenel Autumn Auction 2023 Taipei

Alias BSL 03

Invader (French, 1969)

2016

Mosaic tiles on Perspex

75.9 x 85.4 cm

Estimate

TWD 14,000,000-22,000,000

HKD 3,415,000-5,366,000

USD 437,800-687,900

CNY 3,196,000-5,023,000

Sold Price


Signature

Engraved on reverse BSL_03 and dated 2016

PROVENANCE
Over The Influence, Los Angeles
Acquired from the above by the present owner
This Work is to be sold with the ID card signed by the artist.

+ OVERVIEW

Space Invader, or Invader, is an internationally renowned French street artist. The stage name is inspired by the popular street video game "Space Invaders" that has been popular since 1978. "Space Invaders", nicknamed "Little Bee" in Taiwan, players move horizontally between left and right to launch aircraft to shoot the invaders in the space above. "Space Invaders" is one of the most groundbreaking and influential video games in history. The video game that the artist loved playing during boyhood was so deeply rooted in his heart. Invader developed a grid of 2D dot matrix mosaic tiles to assemble graffiti, just like the aliens from the "Space Invaders", which quietly climbed up the street walls of major cities around the world. With a high level of artistic recognition, they have become alternative classics in the 21st century. His pixel style image creation is undoubtedly a nostalgic and romantic interpretation of the 20th century digital age. His unmatched graffiti application of mosaic tiles or magic squares has become Invader's most iconic media expression. So far, he has a total of 4151 invaders spread across the earth's surface, are widely distributed in more than 83 regions. Basel has a rich history of art, while most people know this city in Switzerland is because of its annual art fair, yet the art scene in Basel is way much more than that and definitely worth visiting year-round. Basel has nearly 40 museums, as well as numerous galleries, art spaces and programmes, not to mention architectures that are so unique in style. The diverse artistic culture even more so makes the street art filled with vitality across the streets in Basel. In the 21st century, art medium has crossed over from traditional media such as paper and canvas to daily life and even the Internet. As a symbol of social movements, the pursuit of freedom and the realization of autonomy, street art undoubtedly is a leading representative of the art world during this period in terms of scale, visibility of works and growth in popularity. The creative concept of coexisting with the site turns the city into an open-air art gallery. Most of the origins of street art can be traced back to New York's subway graffiti upsurge, which began in the 1960s, gradually matured in the 1970s, and reached its peak in the 1980s. French urban artist Invader transforms video game characters into substance, giving them life in reality, invading every country and adding interesting and diverse features to the urban landscape. In order to avoid damaging historical buildings, he even employs mosaics in his collage creation. "Alias BSL 03" was originally set on the Schneider street in the city of Basel. It is one of the city's 25 outer space invaders. Compared with the short-lived nature of spray painting, the mosaic bricks can be preserved for a longer time. The mosaic outer space invaders are one of the Invader's classic symbols and the rainbow is Invader's ideal expression of the beauty of art. Invader's spatial interaction in each city is planned according its aesthetics and uniqueness. His artistic humor allows people to have more interactivity with the city, which also brings surprises to public life. Every time when he completes an urban installation, later he will rate the project, just like scoring in the video game. From the earth's surface to space, Invader that can be seen everywhere on the streets is seriously launching an all-round invasion of the world!
Related Info

Modern & Contemporary Art

Ravenel Autumn Auction 2023 Taipei

Sunday, December 3, 2023, 2:00pm