French Artist "Ememem" Fills In Pavement Cracks With Colorful Mosaic Art

Art is such as powerful medium that it can be used to transform something ‘unsightly’ into a beautiful thing. French artist Ememem uses the emotional power of art to repair cracks on pavements, sidewalks, and building façades. By filling the fractures with vibrant mosaic art, the street artist transforms defects into colorful artworks. The urban art installations feature geometric motifs with multi-colored stripes and radial patterns that bring the otherwise dull gray asphalt and cement to life.

This Lyon-based street artist patches the unsightly cracks and potholes in the streets using ceramic tiles, wood, and bitumen. He describes his street mosaic art as ‘flacking’, an Anglicism derived from the French word ‘flaque’ meaning a ‘puddle’. This self-coined term is used figuratively to refer to an area that looks entirely different from its surrounding. The vibrant design and distinctive pattern filling in the cracks juxtapose the monotonous gray environment of the pavement and sidewalk. Furthermore, the tiled piece of artwork gives the illusion of a picturesque layer hiding underneath the surface.

French Street Artist Transforms Pavement Cracks Into Vibrant Mosaic Art

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Popularly known in Lyon as ‘the pavement surgeon’, the mysterious artist prefers to keep his identity unknown. The anonymous artist strolls around the city during the day to search for cracks and potholes to ‘flack’. After making the design and procuring his materials, he rides his moped and returns to the site at night to create the mosaic in secret. He, however, uses the pseudonym ‘Ememem’ which was coined from the sound of his moped.

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Ememem has been beautifying the streets of Lyon with vibrant mosaic art since 2011. In 2016, he began lending his unique art to other cities and towns across France. He gained international acclaim after sharing photos of his works on Instagram. In addition to France, he had also accepted commissions in Barcelona, Madrid, Melbourne, Oslo, Turin, and Aberdeen. With more than 130,000 followers on Instagram who wish to see his face, Ememem still stands firm on keeping his identity secret that he constantly refuses requests for interviews.