In the late 1990s, anonymous French artist Invader began cementing and gluing ceramic mosaic Space Invaders—pixelated characters from the eponymous 1978 video game—across the streets of Paris. He expanded his roster to include Pac-Man ghosts and other popular 8-bit characters, and his works now adorn cities around the world, from Los Angeles to Kathmandu. Along with these clandestine works of street art, Invader has produced mosaics on Perspex panel, plywood, and book covers. He has also created paintings, drawings, and screenprints in his signature pixelated style. These works regularly sell for six figures on the secondary market. In 2019, astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti brought one of Invader’s works to the International Space Station, about 248 miles above Earth. Invader has exhibited internationally, with shows in Los Angeles, Paris, Brussels, and Hong Kong, among other cities.

Invader

French

Enki Bilal, a French-Yugoslavian comic book writer and artist, has gained widespread recognition for his notable work, "The Carnival of Immortals," which saw the creation of two successful sequels: "The Woman Trap" in 1986 and "Equator Cold" in 1993. In addition to his comic book achievements, Bilal, serving as both writer and illustrator, crafted "The Monster's Tetralogy" in 1998.

While primarily known for his contributions to the graphic arts, Bilal has also ventured into filmmaking, directing three movies. In 1989, he helmed "Bunker Palace Hotel," followed by "Tykho Moon" in 1997 and "Immortal" in 2004, the latter being an adaptation of his earlier Nikopol Trilogy. Bilal's multifaceted talents have earned him accolades, including being named Officier des Arts et des Lettres in 2003 and receiving a knighthood in the Ordre National du Mérite in 2010. In a unique tribute, an asteroid was even named after him in 2006.