Fakewhale Solo Series presents El Gato by Lola Dupre

El Gato: Paper Realms and Digital Dreams in Lola Dupre’s Artistic Synthesis

A Scottish collage artist and illustrator based near Glasgow, Lola Dupre embodies the fusion of analog depth with the vast possibilities of the digital landscape.

Her creative journey, marked by a unique blend of traditional and contemporary influences, has led her to the spotlight, with a portfolio comprising iconic cover art for TIME Magazine and Penguin Classics, as well as impactful campaigns for Nike Basketball and The Atlantic Magazine, among others.

Dupre’s signature technique of meticulously cutting and layering paper acts as a modern echo of the early 20th century Dada movement, while simultaneously embracing the aesthetics of our contemporary times.

This dual approach has led to her receiving accolades and features in leading museums, including the Museum for Contemporary Art in Monterrey Mexico, Direktorenhaus in Berlin, as well as exhibiting in worldwide exhibitions, from the Cat Art Show in Los Angeles, to showcases in Valladolid, Spain. Also noteworthy are her most recent digital art endeavors with Superchief Gallery, and as of most recently, Fakewhale, with the ART MARKET and now, her first Fakewhale Gallery Solo Series — El Gato.

“El Gato”, a standout exhibition in Dupre’s digital art portfolio, effectively conveys her journey as a self-taught artist who has skillfully integrated her extensive background in sculpture, stop animation, photography, and painting into her paper collages.

Drawing from a broad spectrum of inspirations—from the historical richness of Bruegel and de Lempicka to the contemporary edge of A.L Crego and Ganbrood—Dupre’s work on “El Gato” embodies her deep engagement with the figurative art tradition and its ability to transcend both time and space. Likewise, her appreciation for varied artistic movements, including the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood, lends her collages a timeless essence, while her openness to digital innovation hints at a future bursting with artistic possibilities.

Dupre herself articulates the essence of her artistic vision: “What does the art represent?, it is personal. I think art should be beautiful and inspiring, it should rise above our personal concerns and interpretations and connect us to a greater thing. I was always interested in art that existed outside of the gallery. In that sense, I am intrigued by natural phenomena in the same way as I enjoy art. My work is currently always physical, always paper. But the motivation is not the technique, only the final image is important. The work is physical because this is my background. But I am in awe of the digital landscape. The future. The possibilities.”

At the core of Dupre’s artistic process lies a deep commitment to the physicality of her medium. Even as she navigates the digital landscapes and their myriad possibilities, she remains steadfastly connected to the tangible, hands-on world of paper.

This dedication does not stem from a dismissal of digital mediums but rather from a genuine reverence for the tactile act of creation. As such, her approach to collage extends beyond mere technique, focusing instead on the evocative potential of the final image.

Dupre’s style reflects the symbiotic blending of the tactile depth of traditional media with the dynamic, provocative themes of contemporary life. Driven by an insatiable curiosity, Dupre continually explores how the transient and the perpetual can coalesce within her work.

In both pieces of El Gato, there’s a tangible sense of this duality: a respect for traditional techniques alongside her appreciation for the aesthetic capabilities of digital tools.

The first piece, Scooter, presents a cat with multiple sets of eyes layered across its face, in a way suggesting a multifaceted perspective on the world. It’s a visual metaphor, perhaps, for the artist’s own process—seeing the world through a lens that multiplies and distorts to create something new and fascinating, echoing Dupre’s fascination with beauty and the figurative.

The second artwork, Linus, shows a cat engaged with a laptop, presenting a playful merging of modernity and the animal kingdom. A piece that in a way, in its anthropomorphization of its subject, inherently touches on the inherent connection between Dupre’s chosen medium of paper and the digital world she embraces with open arms.