EL SEED

(Le Chesney 1981)

A prominent figure in contemporary Islamic art, EL SEED merges the immediacy of Western graffiti with the poetry and fluid elegance of Arabic calligraphy. He paints letters, color, and movement—consciously using his art as a tool of political expression. His visual poetry builds bridges between cultures, carrying his message across the globe.
Born in Le Chesnay, a suburb of Paris, to Tunisian parents, EL SEED created his first major mural one year after the Tunisian revolution, in the city of Kairouan. His works appear worldwide and are especially celebrated in the UAE: he painted the Municipality Building in Abu Dhabi and created a monumental sculpture in Dubai’s Nad Al Sheba district.
In 2013, he collaborated with Louis Vuitton on fashion pieces and accessories. His large-scale site-specific interventions include the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, the DMZ between North and South Korea, the townships of Cape Town, and the heart of Cairo’s garbage collectors’ district. In 2017, he received the UNESCO Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture.

elseed

elseed-art.com

MARK JENKINS

(Alexandria, Virginia 1970)

Arguably the most situational of urban artists, Mark Jenkins is best known for his hyperrealistic sculptures and his use of public space as a theatrical stage.
Since 2003, he has been developing anthropomorphic sculptures made of clear packing tape, often casting his own body in the process. One of his early projects featured figures placed throughout the streets of Rio de Janeiro, where Jenkins documented the reactions of passersby, turning the installation into both a social experiment and an art project.
Whether shown in public spaces or gallery settings, his sculptures explore human connection and act as mirrors to our understanding of the world. His work has garnered international acclaim and has been exhibited in galleries around the world.
He lives and works in Washington, D.C.

xmarkjenkinsx.com

DELTA

(Amsterdam 1968)

A pioneering figure in the graffiti world and now a recognized international artist, Boris Tellegen, aka DELTA, co-founded Amsterdam’s first graffiti crew, United Street Artists (USA), in the early 1980s alongside Shoe (Niels Meulman), Jaz (Jasper Krabbé), and Joker. In 1986, he also helped found the INC (Incontrol) crew.
One of the first European graffiti writers, DELTA is considered a reference point for his generation and a pioneer of the 3D graffiti style.
In 1994, he earned a degree in Industrial Design Engineering from the Delft University of Technology, a background that clearly informs his multifaceted artistic production, which includes sculpture, collage, and large-scale mixed-media installations.
The influence of architecture and design is evident in both his studio work and outdoor installations. His projects have been exhibited in numerous galleries worldwide, and he has been the subject of major solo exhibitions at institutions including the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Tourcoing (France), the Houston Gallery in Seattle, and MIMA in Brussels.

deltainc.nl