Known for his guerrilla street art, Invader’s new piece features a running Space Invader figure, matching the colours of the Paris Olympics.
ADVERTISEMENTThe mystery French street artist known only as “Invader” has struck again – this time to celebrate the Paris Olympics.
Invader, often compared to Bristol-born artist Banksy, has been gluing mosaics to Paris walls since the 1990s, usually at night and without permission. His works now dot all corners of the City of Light and his fans have a lot of fun hunting them down.
Fans of his work can download the artist's app, "Flash Invaders," which lets users photograph his artworks and receive points for each discovery. The app has proven to be irresistibly addictive, with nearly 400,000 players.
The new piece is the 1,512th that Invader has glued up in Paris.
It depicts of his signature Space Invader figures running - a fitting tribute as thousands of athletes from more than 200 countries and territories are in the French capital to compete at the Olympic Games that end Sunday.
The work’s colours are roughly the same shades of blue that Paris Games organisers have used to decorate the city for the Olympics.
On Instagram, the artist posted a photo of the work, captioned “a special piece for the olympics", with a couple of joggers running past.
That and a video post by the artist alerted some of his avid admirers that there was a new work for them to flash and earn points from.
A small group of them quickly gathered to take its photo with the app, get their reward, and spend time admiring the work.
“It allows you to look at life differently," said Gema Calero, an admirer of the artist. "You hunt around for the artworks. You look up a little bit. Because normally when we walk we look at what’s in front of us. This way we’re looking around. Yes, it’s super."
Invader isn't the only street artist causing a stir at the moment. The elusive Banksy has unveiled four new artworks this week in an ongoing animal-themed series around London (see above).
The saga began on Monday 5 August where he presented the first work near Kew Bridge in southwest London. The piece, created in his signature stencil style, depicts a goat with rocks tumbling below it.
Following the goat, Banksy posted an image of another animal artwork on his Instagram page the next day. This time, located in Chelsea, it featured two elephants looking out at each other from blocked-out windows, their trunks almost touching.
Then came, three swinging monkeys across a railway bridge in Brick Lane, East London and most recently a howling wolf in Peckham, which was stolen within hours of its debut.
