Born in 1991 in Courcouronnes (France)
Lives and works in Paris (France)

In collaboration with Casey MQ
The work of Jimmy Beauquesne weds a colourful pop aesthetic with often tragic subjects. For Young International Artists, the artist has composed an intimate evocation of a powerful teenage sentiment: being a fan. The singer Justin Bieber, Beauquesne’s fantasy doppelgänger, is depicted in a series of fanfiction-inspired illustrations in which the superstar is kidnapped by aliens. The artist views drawing as a medium permeated by nostalgia and empathy, which here can emphasise the intensity of a love that is paradoxically detached from any actual knowledge of the other.

For the exhibition, the musician Casey MQ – enlisted by the artist, who was keen to satisfy his urge for fan worship – has given a song by Bieber and Ariana Grande a hyperpop remix, accentuating the artificial quality of voices and sounds. Wallpaper, curtains, illustrations and music conjure a teenager’s bedroom – a microcosm where love and pathos cohabit. These elements wring maximum impact from the pop-culture references, which become malleable identity-building tools, fusing familiarity and fiction.