PARIS.- Artcurial will present on 5october, in Paris, a selection of the most iconic works from Charlie le Mindu, the artist that the conceptualized the concept of Haute Coiffure.
Early in the 2000’s, the young Charlie, aged 16, had already made his mark in a traditional hair salon in the small town of Bergerac before discovering the fascinating world of punk hairdressing in Bordeaux with Caroline Martial, who opened up to him the doors of an almost infinite creative universe. It was time for him to join the heart of Europe which was then beating in Berlin to the rhythm of electro music. Charlie carries his hair kit through Berlin clubs where he sets up pop-up salons. Six years of nightlife and Charlie leaves Berlin to join London. It is in this city, which has already revealed John Galliano and Alexander McQueen, that Charlie will design and develop the project of his life: Haute Coiffure.
The success is almost immediate, and the collections follow one another in an incredible surge of creativity. Gold Sabah, Metal Queen, Burka Curfew, Girls in Paradise… Every Charlie’s show becomes a London Fashion Week event. Collaborating with other creative minds, Charlie begins his collaboration with Lady Gaga on Bad Romance, the clip with 1.5 billion views. A new page in his story opens in Los Angeles where he strings together projects at the frenetic pace imposed by the city of angels. He is recognized for his virtuosity, his professionalism and his altruism. In twenty years of career Charlie has set himself only one objective: to offer a moment of happiness to everyone, from the regulars of the small salon of Bergerac to the greatest artists of our time.
« The works of Charlie Le Mindu are the very incarnation of the between Haute Coiffure and Haute Couture. We are very proud to be the first to offer at auction the work of this extraordinary visual artist. » – Clara Vivien, Fashion & Luxury Accessories, Artcurial
« Artcurial and myself are delighted to give the opportunity to collectors around the world to join the adventure of Haute Coiffure by becoming the owner of some of my most significant works created in unchartered artistic territories. Those works bear witness to my artistic approach and collaborations I’ve been lucky enough to have with some of the most creative minds from our era. » – Charlie Le Mindu
Blonde Lips,
Icon from the Pop Culture
The Blonde Lips are undoubtedly the most striking piece ever produced by Charlie le Mindu. If this work has attracted the attention of museums and collectors for more than a decade, it is because it bears witness to the role played by Charlie on October 6th, 2009, the date on which four of the greatest creative talents were to bring Art, Fashion and Music in a new decade. That day, Alexander Lee McQueen, Lady Gaga, Nick Knight and Charlie le Mindu announced that the next ten years were going to be marked by ecological awareness and the culmination of social media as a new paradigm.
On October 6, 2009, Alexander Lee McQueen presented what was to be his last fashion show in Paris. Once again the British fashion designer offers a show in the form of an apocalyptic spectacle placed under the theme of a nature that is undergoing the effect of climate change. The sea level rises and the bodies mutate, gills appear on the faces of the models perched on incredible shoes called Armadillos.
Aware of the advent of new media, Nick Knight offers Alexander Mcqueen the opportunity to broadcast the show live on the internet so that this exceptional moment is shared with as many people as possible. A moment that will end with the new title Bad Romance by Lady Gaga, new queen of pop and close friend of the couturier. Gaga announces the news to her community by posting a simple Tweet that would quickly go viral.
The rest is history: the success of the retransmission is such that the servers crash. The Bad Romance video clip directed by Francis Lawrence, which will later be broadcast on Youtube, reaches 1.5 billion views. The success is global. Lady Gaga appears wearing the Armadillos shoes and Charlie le Mindu’s Blonde Lips. A unique work, from the Girls of Paradise collection, which instantly becomes iconic. The beginning of a long collaboration between Gaga and Charlie whose works will be unveiled during Gaga’s public appearances.
L’Hydne Hérisson ou
la matière en mouvement
Inspired by the Lion’s Mane, a mushroom from the northern hemisphere that can be identified by its long spines. It celebrates the hair as the material of movement by offering a polymorphic alternative to the static and immutable character of the work of Art.
Close to the creatures found in pop culture and science fiction, the work activates its magical character. The spectator then finds himself confronted with a phenomenon of incarnation not knowing if it is of divine, human or animal origin.
« Having always been fascinated by hair and its movements, I consider hairdressing as an Art in its own right. Travelling and living in different places, I met people: I fell in love with cultures, of different eclectic personalities, of the electrical energy of cities and forces of nature, plural expressions and difference. I have explored weirdness, the boundaries of beauty and gender. I fed myself of this multiplicity of singularities, which gave me the inspiration and the strength to take hairdressing to new territories, to create hybrids such as Haute Coiffure, Tricophilic Art or hair choreographies. » – Charlie Le Mindu
