Born Jean René, in Paris in 1983, JR is a French contemporary artist. He started his career as a graffiti artist before committing himself to photography in a mix of street art and photojournalism. His goal is to make people question their perceptions and see the world differently.
For his first large-scale project, “Portrait of a Generation”, from 2004 to 2006, JR displayed large portraits of young residents in the Bosquets housing project. Later, after the 2005 riots, he challenged negative media portrayals of suburban youth by using powerful images to question stereotypes and provoke reflection on identity and social exclusion.
Among his other projects in Paris are optical illusions, for example, one at the Louvre Museum in 2019, one at the Eiffel Tower in 2021, and one at the National Opera of Paris in 2023. Each project has its unique feature; the Louvre installation, made of paper, was designed to disappear as visitors walked over it, the Eiffel Tower project was made with the anamorphic technique (a distorted projection that creates an optical illusion), while the Opera project was a live art performance in two acts, featuring dancers in the second act. With these projects, JR wanted to give citizens the opportunity to see Paris differently, beyond the monuments’ architecture and their urban landscape, while giving everyone the opportunity to interpret the art in their own way.
Beyond Paris, JR is a socially committed artist. He made many other projects worldwide, exploring themes such as freedom, feminism, identity, and peace. One of them, called “Déplacés”, consists of 6 large-scale artworks in 6 different countries: Ukraine, Rwanda, Mauritania, Colombia and Greece in 2022 and Italy in 2023. This project represents refugee children, and is made with tarpaulins. Each structure was put up by local volunteers who helped contribute to this project.
Turin, Italy
Mbera, Mauritania
Through his art, whether in France or abroad, JR turns the streets into open-air galleries that connect people and encourages them to reconsider the unseen aspects of the world around us.
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