Michèle Lamy is one of contemporary culture’s most enigmatic and influential figures. Working across art, design, performance, film, fashion and hospitality, she has spent decades cultivating a practice that defies categorisation, bringing together diverse disciplines through a singular vision shaped by experimentation, intuition and collaboration. More than an artist, Lamy has become a cultural force whose presence and ideas continue to inspire generations of creatives around the world.

Born in France, Lamy studied law before participating in the social upheavals of May 1968 and later studying with philosopher Gilles Deleuze. Over the following decades she moved fluidly between roles as a lawyer, cabaret performer, restaurateur, designer, producer and entrepreneur, ultimately becoming Co-Founder of Owenscorp alongside Rick Owens. Throughout her life, she has cultivated spaces where art, music, fashion, architecture and philosophy intersect, building a practice rooted in community, dialogue and creative exchange.

In 2022, Lamy collaborated with CIRCA on LIMBO, a contemporary still-life film broadcast across public screens in London, Berlin, Melbourne and Tokyo. Directed by Amanda Demme and Mollie Mills, the work presented an intimate and unretouched portrait of Lamy filmed on 35mm, transforming some of the world’s busiest urban environments into spaces of contemplation and stillness. Positioned between performance, portraiture and moving image, the commission explored ideas of vulnerability, autonomy and presence, offering audiences a rare encounter with an artist whose work has long challenged conventional ideas of identity, ageing and representation.

Lamy’s influence extends far beyond any single discipline. Whether through performance, design, art-making or the communities she has helped foster, her work is characterised by a refusal to accept fixed definitions or established hierarchies. Through a life dedicated to creative freedom and cultural experimentation, Michèle Lamy continues to demonstrate how art can be lived as much as it can be made.