Radim Měsíc (* 1988) gained his first artistic impulses in the graffiti scene in his native Prostějov, where as a teenager he was particularly interested in street art, especially in creating original DIY stickers. While creating these so-called stickerky, he first tried spray paint, acrylics, graphic programs or printing on a needle printer. Nowadays, Měsíc is mainly known as a graphic designer associated with the poster culture in Olomouc. While studying film theory and history at Palacký University, he made his name by creating posters for the Pastiche Filmz film club, where he produced unique posters for regular screenings week after week from 2010 to 2015. His style quickly became well-known, and he gradually expanded his portfolio to include the design of festivals (L I T R, AFO, Majáles, etc.) or music media, typesetting and graphic design of professional publications.
His style is characterized by masterful technical workmanship and playful visual details, intertwined with originally composed typography. Although he uses an established set of motifs (mainly skulls, pistols, fists and hearts), underneath loads of flashy colors, layers of image surfaces and distinctive stylisation inspired by contemporary pop culture, there is always a distinctly original result. Outside of his commissioned work, he has been intensively involved in lomography for many years, which allows him a particularly spontaneous approach to the photographic medium. Měsíc’s exhibition experience has so far been rather scarce and relates specifically to his design work.
This is the first time he has been in the role of an exhibiting artist outside of applied art. With the spectacular installation, God Loves You, created especially for Kontext, he expresses his fascination with the cult of Jesus Christ and Christian aesthetics in general as the best-selling merchandising in the history of mankind. Without approaching the subject primarily from the position of a critical intellectual, he seeks to transform the spiritual aura of aesthetically captivating motifs into an ironic gesture directed against the practices of the ecclesiastical institution and the consumer culture of our time.
