© Lucas van der Rhee

Sébastien Robert (b. 1993. Nantes, FR) is an interdisciplinary artist and researcher developing a practice at the intersection of visual and sound art, technology, science and ethnography. Most of his projects revolve around a research cycle, You’re no Bird of Paradise, through which he explores disappearing Indigenous sonic rituals and cosmologies. 

Beyond simple documentation, yet not an ambitious ethnographic archiving project, he aims to translate these immaterial resources into long-lasting tangible works of art made of materials that echo the traditions of the communities encountered and the geo-specificities of the territories explored.  

Through his work and research, Sébastien searches for possibilities to create an engaged and expanding artistic dialogue between non-Western perspectives and new technology, questioning our perception of the world and highlighting its epistemological diversity.

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As an integral part of his research, Sébastien participated in various artist residencies such as The Arctic Circle (Svalbard, NO), Iméra (Marseille, FR) and Valley of the Possible (Curacautin, CL) and he gave lectures at institutions such as the Museum of Civilizations of Europe and the Mediterranean (Marseille, FR), the ITMO University (Saint Petersburg, RU) and the HEAD - University of Art and Design (Geneva, CH). 

Sébastien has recently exhibited his work at Scopitone (Nantes, FR), Light Art Museum (Budapest, HU) and FIBER (Amsterdam, FR) and has performed at various internationally recognised festivals such as Rewire (The Hague, NL), Organik (Hualien, TW) and Mirage (Lyon, FR). Sébastien graduated with honours from the ArtScience Master between the KABK - Royal Academy of Art and KC - Royal Conservatory of The Hague in 2020, where he now lives and works.