Since launching in 1992, M/M(Paris) has worked with a wide variety of brands. Their diverse range of work is too extensive to list here, including fashion brands like A.P.C., Louis Vuitton, and Yohji Yamamoto, as well as album covers for Madonna and music videos for Björk.

Why are they based in Paris? "I think we chose Paris because it's such a great place for creativity. It's not too big, not too small. It's a visually interesting city, so it's a great place to inspire me. Also, maybe I'm simply French, so I feel more at home in my own country," explains Matthias, who originally studied biology and never particularly considered becoming an artist as a child. However, he loved drawing, and he shares a heartwarming story about how he once held a small exhibition in his room and invited his parents. He then enrolled at the prestigious École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he "just went with the flow (laughs)." There, he met his future business partner, Michael Amzalag, and founded the graphic studio "M/M (Paris)." Because they're so active across art, fashion, and entertainment, it's difficult to sum up their work in one word. We asked Matthias what title he thinks best describes them now. "It's always difficult to find a title that fits perfectly. I'm not particularly a graphic designer. That's why we named our unit 'M/M (Paris)', which is an acronym for our first names. We don't create objects (artworks), we produce ideas," Matthias explained. He also mentioned that they don't have a specific approach to their various projects, which transcend genre boundaries, but rather try to approach them with the same attitude. In addition to Yohji Yamamoto, the two have worked on numerous projects related to Japan, including the logo for Fukushima-based art magazine "X MAGAZINE" and an advertising campaign for Parco. Since their first visit about 10 years ago, they have visited Japan many times, and each time they visit, they say they gain a lot of inspiration from the country. "There are many things I like about Japan, but I respect and am grateful to art director Katsumi Asaba, who first invited us to Japan. I think he is a wonderful person with a great balance." X MAGAINE, for which M/M(Paris) created the logo, is a project launched in 2013 by Fukushima native Toshiki Yagisawa as a form of cultural support for the Great East Japan Earthquake. Yagisawa, who has long admired M/M(Paris), approached them directly via email, which led to the collaboration. "I believe that Japan is the only place in the world where you can feel such a strong belief in life, no matter how difficult the situation. The way people have joined forces to rebuild after the Great East Japan Earthquake and the nuclear power plant issues is truly amazing. That's why I feel that I was able to contribute, however small, by creating the logo for X MAGAZINE, an art magazine from Fukushima."

In the 1990s, the heyday of graphic design, M/M (Paris) used visually understandable typography to create a creative form of expression with their mysterious, cryptic designs. What path have they walked over the past 20 years? We hope you will find the answer at this exhibition.


【Exhibition Venue Information】
M/M (PARIS) SUGOROKU DE L’OIE
Date: Until 18:00 on April 20th
Venue: Parco Museum
Address: Shibuya Parco Part 1, 3F, 15-1 Udagawa-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
TEL: 03-3477-5873

--[Part 1] Read "The trajectory of M/M (Paris), unraveled like a game through poster works from the past 20 years."