Mike Bouchet

By critically examining political, economic, and cultural systems and exploring the artist's role in society, Mike Bouchet's works possess a dual nature, skillfully balancing seriousness and absurdity. These pieces blur the boundary between art and life, reality and fantasy, often intentionally fostering confusion within these realms.

Biography of Mike Bouchet

Mike Bouchet was born in 1970 in Castro Valley, California, USA. From 1991-1994, he studied at UCLA in California, USA, under the mentorship of esteemed artists, including Paul McCarthy, Richard Jackson, Chris Burden, and Charles Ray.

Throughout his artistic career, Bouchet has taken part in several international biennials, including Manifesta 11 in 2016, held in Zurich, Switzerland; the 30th São Paulo Biennial in 2012, Brazil; the 53rd Biennale di Venezia in 2009, Italy; the 4th Berlin Biennial in 2006, Germany; and the 1st Ghent Quadrennial in 2001, hosted at Casino, S.M.A.K. in Ghent, Belgium. Furthermore, in 2014, Bouchet was honored with the prestigious 1822-Kunstpreis.

Currently, Mike Bouchet resides and creates in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Mike Bouchet's Art Style

Since the early 1990s, Bouchet has crafted an extensive collection of conceptually rigorous works, encompassing paintings, sculptures, installations, videos, actions, interventions, and performances. Throughout his career, the artist's primary focus has centered around scrutinizing consumer culture and the diverse range of products it generates.

In 2004, he developed a formula for Cola Lite, a product similar to Coca-Cola but without sweeteners. He conceptualized this dark substance as a response to foreign oil, analogous to America's oil exports. After realizing that the formula doubled as paint, he began employing it to forge watery, caramel-colored compositions. Subsequently, he expanded his usage to fill assorted containers and spaces with liquid or solid iterations of Cola Lite, giving rise to distinct installations.