Mixed media artist Lyle XOX is a phenomenon – a storyteller, a culturally astute self -portrait whiz and a fantasist. He is one of a kind, and has just launched his first solo show at Gallery Jones in Vancouver.

Lyle Reimer, his real name, makes living sculptures from odds and ends and ephemera that result in his fantastical visions. The characters he makes (and wears) are “icons and iconoclasts, mythical figures and other worldly creatures, caricatures and originals,” the gallery says.

Lyle XOX has a moving and absorbing story, told in a CBC documentary here. Watch the trailer, above, on vimeo,

In 2022, he fully emerged as a cultural force after Vogue magazine named him one of the top 100 people around the world who are pushing the boundaries of art, beauty and style (See more photos and more about his background on the 2022 Art Junkie post here)

He is a Blanche Macdonald Makeup graduate (Vancouver) who worked for 16 years as a MAC makeup trainer. He now prefers to drop the “makeup” part of his identity as an artist, saying “although I use makeup as a vehicle to get from point A to point B, it’s not the main source of transportation.”

His Instagram, here.

Gallery Jones, here.

A good background profile on ID magazine, here.

Lyle XOX has been featured in numerous international publications including ArtNet, Vogue Italia, Surface, V, New York Times, L’Officiel, DAZED, Montecristo and many others. In 2019, he released a book, published by Rizzoli in New York, titled Lyle XOX: Head of Design. He has given artist talks in New York, Paris, Tokyo, Mexico City, Taiwan and Amsterdam. In addition, Lyle XOX collaborated with renowned musician and performer FKA Twigs, and within the year created a campaign for the prestigious South Korean eyewear brand, Gentle Monster and completed commissions for luxury brands Comme des Garcon and Maison Margiela.