Pascale Marthine Tayou, the artist behind illycaffè's new illy Art Collection

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Oct 12, 2022, 08:00 ET

The collection will be previewed at international contemporary art fairs in London, Paris, and Turin

TRIESTE and LONDON, Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- illycaffè presents the new illy Art Collection by Pascale Marthine Tayou, one of Africa's leading contemporary artists.

Pascale Marthine Tayou has captivated an international audience with his work since the beginning of the 90s. Characterized by a very strong versatility and heterogeneity, elusive of any type of pre-established scheme, his work mediates between different cultures by comparing man and nature, social, cultural, or political constructions.

The representation of the mask in Tayou's work is a recurring reference to his homeland, and to the issues of identity and dissimulation, mixed with hybrid materials from all over the world. Indeed, the artist - who likes to define himself a foreigner, a nomad, and a traveller - believes that the concepts of encountering, exchanging, and sharing constitute the future of humanity.

Decorating the espresso cups and coffee tins that comprise the illy Art Collection, Pascale Marthine Tayou has chosen a color palette which depicts African landscapes. Creating a stylised mask leaning against a tree, whose every branch has eggs growing on them as a symbol of birth and creation, the collection is a reflection on the great issues of our time: conflicts, environmental sustainability, globalisation, immigration.

"The desire to give voice to the various languages and movements of contemporary art on all five continents through the iconic white illy espresso cup, which becomes a blank canvas at the disposal of the great masters of art, helped us get to know Tayou - commented Cristina Scocchia, CEO of illycaffè – a versatile artist who used the typical shapes and colours of his works to express his interpretation of the world through this new illy Art Collection".

Pascale Marthine Tayou has chosen to describe the illy Art Collection through the verses of a poem he composed for the occasion:

My sweet illy…
A cup like half an egg.
Its sap on your lips in search of flavour.
Tender buds on blooming branches,
A smiling mask guarding the colored eggs.
Spots of happiness in the spice country,
a saucer like an oasis of pleasure for sweets.

The illy Art Collection signed by Pascale Marthine Tayou will be previewed at the following international contemporary art fairs: Frieze London, Asia Now in Paris, and Artissima in Turin.

The illy Art Collection and the limited-edition 250-gram tin of 100% Arabica illy blend, available in both the Classic and Intense roast, will be available from the illy e-shop, illy stores (illy Caffè and illy Shop), major retail outlets, and indirect e-commerce channels.

6 espresso cups at a suggested retail price of € 136
6 cappuccino cups at the suggested retail price of € 166
2 espresso cups at the suggested retail price of € 51
2 cappuccino cups at the suggested retail price of € 61

Decorated 250 gr. coffee tin at the suggested retail price of € 6,99

Pascale Marthine Tayou

Born in Cameroon in 1966, Pascale Marthine Tayou has participated in several prestigious artistic events including Documenta in Kassel in 2002 and the Venice Art Biennale in 2005 and 2009. Tayou is interested in the effects of objects, ideas, and people circulating worldwide, blending geographies, and combining symbols, techniques, and materials from various different cultural traditions with the goal of creating new meanings and new interpretations of reality. He will use almost anything to create his pieces: chalk, glass, textiles, wood, rocks, iron, and plastic bags, transforming them into sculptures and installations.
Pascale Marthine Tayou lives and works between Ghent, Yaoundé and Paris, where he teaches at the Academy of Fine Arts. He is represented by GALLERIA CONTINUA.

illy Art Collection

For illycaffè, whose distinctive values are Good, Goodness, Beauty, contemporary art adds beauty to taste. The beauty illycaffè strives to achieve is inspired by the ancient Greek concept of kalokagathìa, which combines kalòs (that which is beautiful) and agathòs (that which is good) to create a new meaning in which beauty and goodness become one, each depending on the other. The illy Art Collection cups are a tangible expression of this concept. This project was launched in 1992, and through it the company transformed an everyday object into a blank canvas by inviting contemporary artists to express their creativity on the coffee cup designed by Matteo Thun for illy. Over the years, this canvas has featured the work of over 100 internationally renowned artists, including Michelangelo Pistoletto, Marina Abramović, Anish Kapoor, James Rosenquist, William Kentridge, Yoko Ono, Gillo Dorfles, Robert Wilson, Ai Weiwei and others…

illycaffè is an Italian family-owned company, founded in Trieste in 1933. Its mission has always been to offer the best coffee to the world. Illycaffè produces a unique 100% Arabica blend, combining 9 of the best varieties in the world, selected by illycaffè: every day 8 million cups of illy coffee are served in over 140 countries around the globe, in the cafés, restaurants and hotels, in single-brand cafés and shops, at home and in the office. As a result of its innovations, illycaffè contributes to the coffee technology progress at global level. In 1991, the "Premio Ernesto Illy de qualidade sustentavel do cafè para espresso" was launched in Brazil for quality espresso coffee. Illycaffè has contributed to the sharing of the know-how, paying growers a premium price for the best quality selected by illycaffè. Since 2016, with the "Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award", the company has celebrated coffee growers all over the world that, according to illy, have produced the best sustainable coffee. Since 2013, the company has been in the list of the World Most Ethical Companies. In 2019, it enhanced its commitment to pursue a sustainable business model integrating the interest of people with the environment, adopting the status of Società Benefit (Benefit Company) and adding this commitment into its own bylaws. In 2021, illycaffè was the first Italian company in the coffee sector to obtain the international certification as B Corp as a result of its commitment to comply with the highest standards of social and environmental performance. The company also founded the University of Coffee, which has the objective of sharing culture at all levels, offering a comprehensive and practical training to growers, baristas and coffee lovers. Everything that is "made in illy" is about beauty and art, the founding principles of the brand, starting from its logo, designed by artist James Rosenquist, up to illy Art Collection cups, decorated by over 120 international artists. In 2021, the company had 1305 employees and a turnover of about €500 million. There are 205 illy single-brand shops in over 40 countries all over the world. In 2021, Rhone Capital became a minority shareholder of illycaffè with the aim of contributing to the company's international growth plans.

SOURCE illycaffè