Red Boy and Blue Boy

The road trip

History, but make it a romp

Two round friends. One red. One blue. Round faces, exaggerated features, cartoonish joy against the world’s most serious landmarks. Conceived in Monaco in 2020, then a global tour of laughs and friends through Paris, Tokyo, New York and Monaco. Cartwheels included.

Conceived in Monaco in 2020, the series grew into a travelling joke with a serious brush. Zoia Skoropadenko paints the landmarks. The boys bounce in front of them. Clem Chambers is in on the plot. Friends gather. People smile. That is the whole thesis.

“I wanted to create something that would speak to people’s inner child. There is a joy and innocence that we often lose as we grow older, and I wanted to capture that feeling with my art.”

Clem Chambers, from The Meloy’s exhibition text

“I hope that our works will bring a smile to people’s faces and remind them of the magic of the world and the joie de vivre of being here.”

Zoia Skoropadenko, same text

The cities where they misbehaved (politely)

  1. 16–20 May 2023 · Paris

    Blue Boy and Red Boy

    Galerie Sylvia Rielle · 10 Place des Vosges, Paris 75004

    Opening night by invitation, then four days of free smiles in the Marais. Eiffel ink. Notre-Dame. Arc de Triomphe. Red Boy with arms out like he owns the Champ de Mars. Friends in coats. That soft Paris laugh that means someone just got the joke.

    The Meloy’s Paris page

  2. 2023 · Tokyo

    Paris Comes to Tokyo

    Aiiima Gallery · Hikarie Shibuya complex

    Zoia, Clem and Japanese artist Kina Sato brought Paris drawings to Shibuya — and the show also presented Blue Boy and Red Boy in Paris. Torii gates. Neon chaos. Mount Fuji watching the cartwheels. Friendship as cultural exchange, with paint.

    The Meloy’s Tokyo page

  3. 2023 · Monaco

    Blue Boy and Red Boy in Monaco

    La Vitrine Contemporaine de Monaco

    Home rock. The harbour that invented them. Palace on the cliff, Oceanographic columns, and a room full of friends who already knew the punchline. The New York press kit later called the Paris and Monaco stops a “resounding triumph.” Fair.

  4. 4–9 September 2023 · New York

    Blue Boy and Red Boy

    Miyako Yoshinaga Gallery · 24 East 64th Street, New York, NY 10065

    Upper East Side, beside Central Park. Round ambassadors of play crash a city that already laughs loud. Empire State among the landmarks. More friends. More wonder. Zero boring.

    The Meloy’s New York page

  5. 5 February – 5 April 2024 · Monaco

    Red and Blue Boys Around the World

    La Vitrine Contemporaine de Monaco · Palais de la Scala, 1 avenue Henri Dunant, Monte Carlo

    The victory lap. Paris, Tokyo, New York and Monaco on one wall of memory. Poster up. Friends in. Joie de vivre on the door.

    The Meloy’s Around the World page

House rules of the series

  • Fun first. If it does not make someone grin, paint again.
  • Friends forever. Red Boy and Blue Boy travel as a pair. Solo missions are boring.
  • Landmarks welcome. The city can be serious. The boys never are.
  • Laughs count as research. Especially in Paris, Tokyo, New York and Monaco.
  • Cartwheels encouraged. See above. Literally.

Want one of the paintings to live with you? Pick a work, or send Clem a request at clemcmail@gmail.com.