”The portraits of MICA set the stage of pure presence of emotions, hybrid and polysemic, a presence which brings together reality, imaginations and wonder.” Nikolaus Ellrodt
Have you ever laughed when thinking about something sad? Have you ever cried when thinking of a happy moment? For 8FACES, I AM MICA sat down with people from all walks of life and asked 8 questions about memories, evoking intense emotions. And then compiled these into one image. Because our faces are a mirror of our memories.
In times when we beautify our public image through flattering angles and filters, we present a distorted version of ourselves. But this pushes the raw and real “us” into background. The tears of joy, the ironic laughter of sadness and the thoughtfulness of surprise, we experience. It’s a dystopian experience deriving us from the intensity of pure and raw emotion. 8FACES is a commentary on this. It does not aim to show “beauty” but serves as a visual reminder that human emotion cannot be filtered.
Born 1972 in Thuringia, digital artist Michael Kuehn (aka “I AM MICA”) founded one of Eastern Germanys first design agencies at the age of 19. By 26 he already exhibited personal artworks in his hometown and then moved to Berlin, where he launched and curated “Sin-Berlin” - an exhibition which featured more than 50 artists including his own work.
After that he moved to New York as a creative retoucher, worked with well known photo artists such as Phil Toledano and Stephen Wilkes. Moving back to Germany he started to shoot images himself, exclusively using large scale cameras while further pursuing creative image retouch working exclusively for Mercedes-Benz via one of Germanys most creative agency “Jung von Matt.”
Since 2016 Mica resides in Beijing/China, where he captures everyday life, culture and landscapes in and around the country while working on his art projects. In 2020 MICA was the first foreign artist to receive the locally coveted “Big Artist Award” for contemporary art in China. In 2021 MICA participated the "Chengdu Biennale Special Invitation Exhibitions - Still On" in the Hemei Art Museum Chengdu.
