Moya, the Artist living in his art work
Performer, visual and digital artist, Patrick Moya make an art mediterranean, funny, baroque, generous and delightful. In Nice (big city near the sea), where he lives, he is the last part of the artistic trend, « Ecole de Nice ».
Born in 1955 in Troyes, France, with spanish parents, Patrick Moya was educated at the «Villa Arson» (school of fine arts) in Nice, before posturing as a nude model for schools during ten years, with the hope to «becoming a Creature instead of the Creator».
At that time, he read McLuhan, and ask questions about changes in art history, because of new medias : « with new medias of ubiquity, like television live, creator has no time for telling art history. He must, if he want survive, became a Creature. »
After this long time where Moya was like Narcissus, looking himself in the yes of other people, he begin working with the letters of his name, MOYA, saying that «the art is signature» during his «neoLettrist» period, before inventing an alter ego (in 1996), his little «moya», a caricatural self-portrait, inspired by Pinocchio, in order to «be part of his art work».
In 1998, he become artist of « Galerie Ferrero », well knowned in France for defending « Ecole de Nice » (Cesar, Arman Ben …), an artistic movement in which Moya is now integrated.
His work grow up, a personal universe appears, soon a bestiary almost human, funny and full of poetry, who stand, looking at the spectator.
In 1999, « Dolly » is born, a little sheep intended to be the mascot of « Dolly party » (famous techno parties), and becomes pretty soon part of the « Moya Land ».
In june 2007, Moya finishes a mural in a little catholic chapel, after 4 years of hard work : the « Moya Chapel » in Clans (village in the mountain near Nice), is now open to visitors and part of the circuit of artists chapels.
Since 2000, Moya becomes a master in « live painting » : he breaks his record in an art fair in Italy, with a huge mural, 27 meters long in 2 days !
Moya also become a digital artist since his early work on computer in the mid-80s : now he is the owner of a virtual Moya Land in the 3D web of Second Life, sort of « serious game » which is an submersive global art work.
Is Moya « one of the great pioneers of the digital universe" as said by the critic Mario Gerosa, specialist in virtual worlds in Italy ?
Gerosa has organized in Florence (Italy, 2009), the first major exhibition about « Art in Second Life », under the title "Rinascimento Virtuale ». It was in the museum of Anthropology of the City of the Renaissance, where an entire room was devoted to the « Moya civilization ».
In summer 2011, the «Moya Universe» is arrived to maturity, as demonstrated by the impressive mural-installation of 90 meters long, a fresco who told the story of «Moya civilization», on the walls of the art center La Malmaison, in Cannes. This exhibition, built also in SL, allowed to visitors to meet the artist from a distance, to ask questions and to visit with him his virtual « Moya Land ».
Today, because of his work in all directions, Moya is both classical and baroque, abstract and figurative, real and virtual, narcissus and generous, in love with popular shows like carnival or circus, as well as the subject of a very serious «catalog raisonné» (40 years of creation, 4200 artworks, 2011).
And the adventure keeps going in real life and in metavers as well - with galleries in Korea (Busan), USA (Cape Cod…), Italy (Parma, Caserta), Luxembourg … Or in France (Nice, Marseille, Metz, Fontainebleau …). With « live paintings » in art fairs (Italy, Germany…), happenings and installation in Cerveira (Portugal), Utrecht (Netherland), Malte or Modica (Sicily) …
In may 2015, a new biography is published, « le cas Moya » (« Moya case »), who proved the coherence of his work : Moya write his name (1979/1989) - Moya tags anonymous images with his name (1990 /1996) - Little « Moya » appears alone in his work (1996 /1999) - Moya create his 2D universe (1999 /2007) - Moya Master of his 3D universe (2007/2015).
The dream of Moya is coming true : to be Tintin rather Hergé, The Joconde rather Leonardo da Vinci … To be a Creature living in his art work, living a « second life » of a Creature playing to be an Artist.
Moya's art virtualize itself (as you can read in his book "Art in the Cloud », 2012), while virtual Moya Land become real, with new mixed art works made of avatars, 3D images, painting, photography of paintings … Or via virtual avatars printed in 3D !