YVES SCHERER

Yves Scherer (b. 1987, Switzerland) is a Swiss contemporary artist living and working in New York. He graduated from the Royal College of Art, London, in 2014 with an MA in Sculpture, after receiving a BA in Sciences of Culture from the University of Lucerne. Experimenting with different mediums and forms, Scherer discusses themes ranging from gender identity, personal life experiences, and emotions to Hollywood culture, public media, and spectacle. The artist questions the boundaries of privacy while exploring the tensions between reality and virtuality, particularly during this digital age of instantaneity. Scherer uses behind-the-scenes stories to render daily moments with a striking combination of intimate thoughts and familiar faces. His work reflects on a voyeuristic desire to peek into the seemingly impenetrable lives of celebrities. Scherer's work surveys society's fascination with entertainment personalities and breaks the mythicized barrier between the fan's imagination and the celebrity. This is evident in Little Mermaid, a stainless-steel form inspired by actress and female activist, Emma Watson. Watson, a recurring subject of his work, is an advocate for gender equality and is portrayed here as both an androgynous commanding figure and a male fantasy at the same time. In this way, the artist plays with gender stereotypes while also forming a physical manifestation of the celebrity as a glossy surface for media and audience projections. Scherer's work has been exhibited at international institutions and galleries such as Institute of Contemporary Arts, London; Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland; Swiss Institute, NY; and Kunstverein Wiesen, Germany. He is the recipient of a Förderpreis Bildende Kunst des Kanton Solothurn 2012 and the Swiss Art Award in 2015, and was listed on Forbes 30 under 30 "art and design" in the class of 2016. Courtesy of the artist (@yvesscherer)