Rise of the Robolución: Retro-Futuristic Robots

14 truly astonishing robot sculptures by Parisian artist Bruno Lefèvre-Brauer, aka +Brauer, are now available at M.A.D gallery in Geneva.

+Brauer’s journey towards upcycling, an art form that provides machines with a second life after their primary uses have expired, started about ten years ago in his workshop just outside of Paris, in a town with strong artistic and industrial past. Each piece of the sculpture was tastefully selected through the years for a second purpose; to be a head, an arm, a leg or a chestpiece for +Brauer’s designs.

“For years I’ve been retrieving, sorting, ordering, and storing parts. It is necessary to go through this in order to be able to create with more freedom.” – Bruno Lefèvre-Brauer, Parisian Artist 

These luminous sculptures invite the curious individual into an impressive imagination of a remarkable artisan, of what was and what it could be. +Brauer’s sculptures truly take a contemporary perspective of what a layman would often pass off as ‘refuse’.

Amassing handpicked mechanical parts for +Brauer’s robot re-incarnation process requires scouring abandoned workshops, scrap dealers or even friends for materials, the artisan then begins sketches on paper followed by lighting designs. The blueprints are finally materialised into works of art where each design is unique. Never reused, never replicated.

Every robot has its very own story and character, portrayed throughout their individualistic design. The lights wired through the robots exude a pulsating glow, to remind the living of the second life that we ought to give to something that we might dispose of.

+Brauer showcases his work in the Marais quarter of Paris, a neighbourhood renowned for its creative vibe, as well as various galleries in- and outside of Paris. Incidentally, his showroom is located right in front of the oldest house in Paris, which was erected in 1407.