{"id":21625,"date":"2025-06-16T18:41:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T18:41:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/?p=21625"},"modified":"2025-06-17T23:26:14","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T23:26:14","slug":"ophelie-simonet-aka-koa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/2025\/06\/16\/ophelie-simonet-aka-koa\/","title":{"rendered":"Oph\u00e9lie SIMONET aka KOA"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"21625\" class=\"elementor elementor-21625\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b76d0b0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"b76d0b0\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c60e022 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c60e022\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 22-05-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>Year of birth: 1987.<br \/>Where do you live: Les Herbiers, Vend\u00e9e.<br \/>Your education: Self-taught.<br \/>Describe your art in three words: Bold, playful, \u201cdopamine-charged\u201d.<br \/>Your discipline: Painting \/ Visual Arts.<br \/><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.artmajeur.com\/koa0\">Website<\/a> |\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/koa.artwork\/\">Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3b3ccd8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"3b3ccd8\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fe8c199 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"fe8c199\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21608 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1050\" height=\"1409\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273.jpg 1050w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273-224x300.jpg 224w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273-763x1024.jpg 763w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273-768x1031.jpg 768w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005273-600x805.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1050px) 100vw, 1050px\" \/><\/h4><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">Your universe blends humor, pop culture, and &#8217;90s nostalgia. What part of your childhood or personal history has most influenced this joyful aesthetic?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">I grew up in the 1990s, surrounded by anime, flashy tracksuits, and rolls of bubblegum. It was a time that was both innocent and bold. I think my style comes from that\u2014a childhood spent between VHS tapes, glitter pens, and dance music. When I paint, it&#8217;s a bit like I&#8217;m still decorating my school notebooks with the energy of my 8-year-old self.<\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">You describe painting as your \u201cdose of freedom\u201d and your antidote to the monotony of daily life. What emotions do you most often channel when creating?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Anger, without hesitation. Mixed with a genuine instinct of pride and courage. But also a sense of mischief and lightness. I paint to engage in a dialogue with the viewer, to offer a playful visual wink. There\u2019s sometimes melancholy, sometimes gentle rebellion, but always a desire to play.<\/p><p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21609 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1050\" height=\"790\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903.jpg 1050w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903-300x226.jpg 300w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903-1024x770.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903-768x578.jpg 768w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dc38abcd-c396-4e44-8da5-986df9f0635e-1_all_4903-600x451.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1050px) 100vw, 1050px\" \/><\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">Does your synesthesia influence your artistic choices\u2014especially your use of bright colors and contrasts?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Yes, I think so. I have ordinal-linguistic synesthesia, which means that letters, numbers, and even musical notes have very specific personalities for me. Colors also have a distinct nature. So when I choose one, it\u2019s not just for aesthetic reasons\u2014it\u2019s because of what it tells me, what it represents. This makes my contrasts and color palettes highly instinctive but also deeply symbolic.<\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">The TECKY collection features dachshunds in both playful and symbolic situations. Why this choice? What do these dogs represent for you?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">The dachshund is the perfect anti-hero: stubborn, unintentionally funny with its improbable body shape, and incredibly endearing. It\u2019s an outsider that couldn\u2019t care less about what others think and just does its own thing. For me, it represents unapologetic uniqueness, self-deprecating humor, and a kind of clumsy determination. And visually, it\u2019s super funky, isn\u2019t it? It\u2019s become my ideal mascot.<\/p><p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21610 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1050\" height=\"1425\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852.jpg 1050w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852-221x300.jpg 221w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852-755x1024.jpg 755w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852-768x1042.jpg 768w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000005852-600x814.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1050px) 100vw, 1050px\" \/><\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">Your work often plays with language, humor, and visual puns. Do you see yourself more as a visual artist or a storyteller?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Both\u2014but with a paintbrush! I love it when someone smiles or pauses, trying to \u201cunderstand\u201d a piece. If it sparks a reaction, a connection, or a question, then I\u2019ve succeeded. I also put a lot of time, care, and heart into writing the descriptions of my paintings. Each text acts as a kind of \u201csolution,\u201d always in reference to the world of games.<\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">In your series \u201cJeu de Couleurs,\u201d you subvert the classic associations between colors and objects. What inspired this approach? And how do you choose your objects?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">I wanted to play with the way we associate certain colors with certain things\u2014and especially to break those automatic reflexes. I choose objects or subjects that are easily recognizable, so I can twist them into visual symbols. But it&#8217;s also important that the French wordplay can be used and understood. It\u2019s both a visual joke and a way of saying: \u201cthings are sometimes different from what we imagine.\u201d<\/p><p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21611 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1050\" height=\"1410\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059.jpg 1050w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059-223x300.jpg 223w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059-763x1024.jpg 763w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059-768x1031.jpg 768w, https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1000006059-600x806.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1050px) 100vw, 1050px\" \/><\/p><h4 style=\"font-weight: 400\">You split your time between a \u201ctraditional\u201d job and your artistic practice. Do these two worlds complement each other or conflict?<\/h4><p style=\"font-weight: 400\">They rub against each other more than they merge, but that tension fuels my creativity. My job imposes structure\u2014a certain language, behavior, and way of operating. Painting is my breath of fresh air, my \u201cplayground,\u201d my kingdom. One feeds the other: the contrast makes art essential.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Year of birth: 1987.Where do you live: Les Herbiers, Vend\u00e9e.Your education: Self-taught.Describe your art in three words: Bold, playful, \u201cdopamine-charged\u201d.Your discipline: Painting \/ Visual Arts.Website |\u00a0Instagram Your universe blends humor, pop culture, and &#8217;90s nostalgia. What part of your childhood or personal history has most influenced this joyful aesthetic? I grew up in the 1990s, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-interviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21625"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22019,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21625\/revisions\/22019"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visualartjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}