Contrary to what you could expect from such a French moniker, the artist behind Madame Péripétie is Polish. Based in London, Sylwana Zybura, her real name, is a fashion photographer and art director working with high-class brands. But this former linguist is also creating edgy conceptual photography while questioning our perception of sublime and the limits of human bodies. Her incredible sense of staging is especially visible in a series of portraits, released as a coveted art book, called The Dream Sequence. With the help of stylist Stella Gosteva and make-up artist Marina Keri, Madame Péripétie played with the codes of kitsch and futuristic aesthetics, earning her many prestigious awards. The bodies of the models, daydreaming in a minimalist dark setting, are covered with incredibly original and whimsical body paintings, bizarre costumes created for the occasion as well as crazy wigs, bunches of flowers and other odd accessories. The eccentric result is a subtle mix of surrealism, sculpture, science fiction, theater (with connections with the work of Robert Wilson as well as kabuki), the punk fetishism of Leigh Bowery and the poetic creations of Alexander McQueen and the Cirque du Soleil… Dazzling! The motto of Madama Péripétie is “If it can be imagined, it exists” and her imagination is certainly opening new doors, inviting us to a brand new bold and enigmatic universe…
