Guillaume Legros uses the pseudonym Saype, derived from the English words "say" and "peace". In 2019, Legros was listed by Forbes as one of the world's most influential people under the age of 30 in the arts and culture category.
World-famous graffiti artist Guillaume Legros, known as Saype, travels the world as part of the 'Beyond the Walls' project he started in 2019.
Saype is an international artist who creates monumental frescoes on grass and soil. With his "Beyond Walls" project, which he started in 2019 as a reaction to the polarizing world, he draws the motif of two interlocked hands, which is now identified with him, in different countries around the world. This project, which he started with his drawings under the Eiffel Tower in Paris, reached different cities such as Geneva, Berlin, Yamoussoukro, and Istanbul.
Saype (born February 17, 1989, in Belfort, France) is a contemporary artist. He is known for creating ultra-realistic giant paintings in nature using a biodegradable paint he invented himself. In 2019, Forbes magazine ranked him among the 30 most influential people under 30 in art and culture.
Saype's aim is to create the world's largest human chain symbolically and to give a universal message regarding any social, ecological, or political problem of the countries he chooses. The project's 19th, or last, leg was Turkey's Hatay province, which suffered great losses after the February 6 earthquakes.
We had a short interview with him:
What is the “Beyond the Walls” project?
Beyond the Walls I emerged when Donald Trump's wall project, which he wanted to build by spending $12 billion to separate Mexico from the United States, came to the fore. This idea, which pushed my logical limits, pushed me to overcome walls and symbolically create the world's largest human chain against different problems. Hatay was the 19th leg of this project, which has existed on three continents since 2019.
So why the clasped hand figure?
Two intertwined hands symbolize the universality of humanity beautifully. I take photographs of the hands of people I encounter in different parts of the world and collect them without specifying to which country they belong. Among them, there are famous names that we all know, as well as homeless people on the streets. In Hatay, I drew two hands that I chose, I don't know where they came from. The secret is right here, seeing everyone as equal without knowing where they come from. At the same time, I think that the solution to the problems in the world can only be achieved by everyone working together. For this reason, the coming together of hands that enable us to create something represents the work we need to do together.
How does the rapid disappearance of the work affect you?
This is what I love. It is such a strong feeling... Because the work disappears, but the memory remains. It is a very strong, special feeling that even if no trace of the work remains, it will remain in people's memories.
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https://en.saype-artiste.com/bio