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José Manuel Egea, born in 1988 in Madrid, has been fascinated with the figure of the lycanthrope, or the werewolf, since his childhood. Not only is he convinced of being one himself, but he seems to want to reveal to us, through his works, that the double monstrosity lies beneath the surface for many of us, if not all of us.

In order to do this, he has developed a rich palette of representations of this “Other” that everyone harbors: from sketches to drawings on photographic portraits taken from magazines or art books, including sculpture and performances during which he “plays out” his transformation. This mythological creature is obviously the symbol of a blurry duality, but it embodies a great power at the same time, mysterious, and capable of exerting an influence on mankind, of inspiring fear in him. So what would be better, to exorcize it, than to play with this fear, to seek to become the fear itself, and to feel invested with its force?

It isn’t insignificant that Egea makes this dark side appear, especially using images printed on glossy paper whose only purpose was to seduce us. He conjures our bestiality there, made of shadowy and menacing silhouettes, enucleated eyes, triumphant hairiness and lupine attributes. And this is the reversal in the other side of the mirror. This iconoclasm can reach the gutter of the page, clear-cut, as if to accentuate the fracture between two worlds; sometimes even, it is the complete covering of the page, through which we can barely see, vanquished in the darkness, the fictitious beauty that these images impose on us.

José Manuel Egea gives himself over to liberating play since, even though he mangles our humanity, by freeing himself from the norm, he reveals the grandeurs of alterity to us in a pure and unrestrained artistic gesture.

Exhibition view of *José Manuel Egea : Lycanthropos*, christian berst art brut, Paris, 2016 - © christian berst art brut, christian berst — art brut
Vue de l'exposition *José Manuel Egea : Lycanthropos*, christian berst art brut, Paris, 2016 - © christian berst — art brut
Exhibition view of *José Manuel Egea : Lycanthropos*, christian berst art brut, Paris, 2016 - © christian berst art brut, christian berst — art brut
Artist
José Manuel Egea
portrait of josé manuel egea - © christian berst — art brut

Convinced of his ability to become a wolf, this young artist from Madrid is fascinated by the Kafkaesque metamorphosis found in the world of comics and mythology. As polymorphic as he is, his work consists of drawings, sculptures and performances, and urges us to accept our own repressed gifts for shape-shifting. Promoted by the gallery since 2016, he had a major show that same year at the Biennale de l’image possible in Liège, Belgium. In 2022, his work was featured in the exhibition Photo | Brut #2 at the Botanique in Brussels. His work is now part of several major European collections of contemporary art such as those of Antoine de Galbert, or Laurent Dumas.

Press review
José Manuel Egea, Lycanthropos – Entretien avec Christian Berst
La Rédaction, Point Contemporain. November 2, 2016.
José Manuel Egea et son loup-garou universel à Christian Berst art brut
La Rédaction, Indie Paris. October 13, 2016.
Le lycanthrope de l’art brut
Philippe Godin, La Diagonale De L’art. October 10, 2016.
José Manuel Egea
Aurélie Romanacce, L’Oeil. September 30, 2016.
lycanthropos
La Rédaction, Paris Art. September 30, 2016.
View more
José Manuel Egea : le lycanthrope de l’art contemporain
Stéphanie Pioda, Artistikrezo. September 20, 2016.
Expo Art Brut: José Manuel EGEA “Lycanthropos”
Eric Simon, ACTUART. September 14, 2016.
José Manuel Egea
Philippe Dagen, Le Monde. September 9, 2016.
A l’avant garde José Manuel Egea série Lycanthropos
Dauphine De Cambre, The ARTchemists. September 5, 2016.
Les galeries du Marais font leur rentrée
Clélia Dehon, The Steidz. September 5, 2016.
Arte Bruta, galeria delicada
Ana Paula Cardoso, O Globo. September 2, 2016.
exposition lycanthropos de José Manuel Egea
Alix Joly, Actu Photo. September 1, 2016.
José Manuel Egea : lycanthropos
Bénédicte Philippe, Télérama Sortir. August 24, 2016.
Video
Jose manuel egea lycanthropos
Language French
José Manuel Egea

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