Glistening with rhinestones, glitter and gold, Devan Shimoyama celebrates identity and sexuality in an extension of his Tarot series.

Le Mat, translating to The Fool, questions the ways in which gende...

Glistening with rhinestones, glitter and gold, Devan Shimoyama celebrates identity and sexuality in an extension of his Tarot series.

Le Mat, translating to The Fool, questions the ways in which gender can be ascertained through the lens of clothes, pattern, colour and demeanour. Though Le Mat is a self-portrait, his figures – or ‘deities’ – are often intentionally androgynous. Holding on tight to the heel of Le Mat is a cat-denom, a recognisable character from the manga series Inuyasha.

As well as manga, Shimoyama’s Tarot series draws from two other central sources of inspiration – his Baptist Christian upbringing and the popular Rider-Waite Smith tarot deck, creating a visual language with which to explore identity, race and sexuality. The use of silkscreen glitter inks, gold foil embossing and rhinestones creates a “dazzling illusion” in the same way that drag might on a performer’s body.

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Edition details
Dimensions
Unframed: 40.5cm x 28cm
Framed: 59.2cm x 45.7cm x 4.5cm
Framing
Prints can be ordered in a custom shaped passe-partout frame to compliment the curved edges of the print, in one of two materials – American knotwood or gold-painted poplar.
Medium
UV flatbed print on 410gsm Somerset Radiant White paper with Zünd cut edges, overlaid with 4 metallic silkscreen glitter inks and embossed with gold foil. Each print is hand-finished by the artist with rhinestones.
Finishing
Signed, numbered and dated on the reverse.
Release date
November 06, 2023
Behind the scenes