Fakewhale Solo Series presents Cathédrales Modernes by Chepertom

Cathédrales Modernes: Digital Sanctuaries in the Age of Industrialization

Chepertom is a French glitch artist whose work combines a variety of media in an attempt to break free from traditional methods of creative production.

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In a world where perfection is relentlessly sought after, Chepertom challenges conventional perceptions, finding beauty in error, and perfection in the imperfections of the digital realm, envisioning a future where glitch art has permeated every layer of the digital and physical world.

As a result, Chepertom’s primary medium of choice – glitch art – transmutes errors and distortions, generally considered digital nuisances, into forms of fascinating beauty. A unique style, that reveals the hidden machinations behind digital image production, creating a visual spectacle that is both disruptive and mesmerizing.

“For this Fakewhale exhibition I wanted to pursue my series « Cathédrales Modernes ». This time I used arial views of parking lots in commercial harbor as a first canvas to begin with. The scene initially takes place in Anvers on google earth, where I created a travelling video. Then I use glitch art process to corrupt the datas and get layers of textures one upon each other.” __ Chepertom

“Cathédrales Modernes” investigates the interplay between industrial functionality and cultural symbolism. Reimagining commercial harbor parking lots of Anvers – captured via aerial views on Google Earth – the series reflects on the modern world’s “new religion” of industry, its efficiency that is revered just as much as the divine.

Based on this viewpoint, the works are deeply informed by Chepertom’s admiration for Monet and the Impressionists, who mastered the art of capturing ephemeral light and shade. By adopting a similar lens aimed at digital landscapes, he curates these moments captured from Google Earth with the meticulous eye of an artist selecting the perfect light. He then skillfully distorts these snapshots, embedding each with layered glitches that imbue depth and narrative, transforming what were previously ordinary aerial maps into multilayered visual dialogues.

Likewise, drawing on the methodological precision of photographers like the Bechers and the grand scale of Andreas Gursky’s works, Chepertom’s approach for these pieces invites a reevaluation of glitch art’s aesthetic and thematic potential.

Here, glitches are in fact not merely artistic tools but rather powerful symbols reflecting the pervasive impact of industry on contemporary life and identity.

The featured artworks, “Cathédrale_Nocturne.ROW” and “Cathédrales_Zénith.ROW,” are a testament to this approach, showcasing how industrial sites can morph into scenes of communal and cultural significance, each piece a chronicle of change—both temporal and technological.