On Friday the 3rd of March 2006, I welcomed in my Parisian flat the artist’s group qubo gas I discovered their work as they were exhibiting at Anne Barrault Garelly in January 2006.

Spotted vert, Courtesy Anne Barrault gallery © Qubo gas 2006

Qubo gas is composed by Laura Henno, Jean-Francois Ablezot and Morgan Dimnet. They are all from Lille, so, very much French (and not Asian or else as I thought while discovering their work). They met at Uni and have been working together since 2000 after one of their musician friends asked them to do its video. “It all happens very naturally” as Laura mentioned.I couldn’t not ask (and apparently I wasn’t the first one), so they anticipated my question!!! And their answer is simple: ‘Qubo gas’ means absolutely nothing! They were playing at words game and this one came out as something their work could be recognised as.

Uki-yo, Courtesy Anne Barrault gallery © Qubo gas

In 2001, they were invited at the Netmage Festival in Italy to perform. Hence things started to become serious and they got together to think of a plan, a constructed project. “Baover Tit” was born, shown at the festival, and on top of all, won the first price. While they reclaimed themselves as drawers’ first, it seems as all invitations were coming from digital art festivals and other digital initiatives. “We draw everything, we use pen, pencil, marker-pen, then we scan these drawings and we add them to other Photoshop drawings” they explain. They enjoy the magical effects of mixing each other universe, until “the three of us are sitting in front of the computer to put together these images thus becoming a Qubogas draw” tells me Laura, laughing at the vision of them three stuck in front of the computer screen.

Qubo gas while working © Laura Henno

“Baover Tit”, presented in Italy in 2001, is a project conceived as a succession of 5 chapters including 5 scenes. “It is a whimsical and fanciful world where magic mushrooms and multicoloured ferns seem to be the only master on board”. As Qubo gas is showing me this work, Morgan realised that it has aged a bit; nowadays the computer is less present in favour of illustration.