Jais Elalouf, Paris - MEET THE COLLECTOR Series Part Ten

For part ten of my ‘Meet the Collector’ series I have interviewed Paris based collector Jais Elalouf. Not only does Jais collect art but he is also a DJ and Director, has a music/PR company and is a musician and artist himself. Read on for more…

Jais Elalouf

1. When did your interest in the field of outsider/psychedelic art begin?
I began to collect music and sleeves and slowly I became fond of the art of the sleeves, which I felt was intricate, surreal, spiritual and colourful. After a lover had left me, I began to collect psychedelic art, this was around 25 years ago.  Psychedelic art is extremely close to outsider art. Psychedelic means mind-manifesting and outsider artists are letting go a lot more - I find this interesting, so I am quite into outsider art as well.

2. Can you tell us a bit about your background?
I studied Business Studies in Madrid, Nice & London which was orientated in art and I did my 30-page memoir on surrealism. Then I began to become an international DJ and Director ( DJ Oof Cinemix,  www.oof.cx) and did about 500 audio-visual shows in 40 countries and directed 70 music videos. From that I began to collect around the world and found psychedelic art everywhere – China, South Africa, South America, etc. Therefore I started to create exhibitions and I have done about 50 so far. Back in 1999 I began my company Ping Pong. It is a music/PR company. We have represented one of main UK labels Ninja Tune for 18 years. I am also a musician and an artist. I have released 6-7 EPs. I am more into music. In art I did about two collages myself, but I prefer to collect other artists’ work.

3. What is it that draws your eye away from contemporary art to outsider/psychedelic art? Or do you collect both?
Contemporary art is almost the opposite of psychedelic art for me. Contemporary art, the main point is the concept, and not the beauty. The main thing about psychedelic art is very often the beauty and the connection to elevate the consciousness. In fact in contemporary art, there are around 20% of works that have a beautiful aesthetic on the wall. For me it’s not interesting in general, mainly I think they are made to make money.

Oof - portrait par Anne Flore Cabanis

4. Can you explain to audiences what you mean when you say you collect psychedelic art, and what are your plans for your collection of this art in the future?
The museum is quite serious. I’ve done a website www.psychedelick.com and the project is being developed there. I want to build a Psychedelic Art Centre to include a museum but allow for residencies and other events to happen there. I am making connections all the time. I envision it being a big project with 12 employees, in a 1,200 metre square space – This would cost a fortune in a major city though. I am trying to find people to help or finding people who know other people to may be able to help. It will happen at some point for sure. In the next year I will work on ‘Revolution’ - it is an exhibition that was at the V&A Museum in London, it traveled around the world. It will be at La Grande Halle in La Villette, Paris, in April 2020. (La Grande Halle is now showing the most popular exhibition ever in France about Tutankhamon, 1,5 million tickets sold.) I will be sub-curating the French part of it and I am lending 100 to 300 pieces for the exhibition. I hope this exhibition will be a turning point for the Psychedelic Art Centre. I will still be curating, programming performance and doing music projects alongside this. Let’s see what happens!

5. What style of work, if any, is of particular interest to you within this field? (for example is it embroidery, drawing, sculpture, and so on)
Definitely I am into drawing and illustration and I’m less into photos. I love to take photos but photo art has much less value for me. Maybe it’s my style. Outside of that I like sculpture I just don’t have space for it. I like painting, posters, lithography, drawings, etc. (paper based works).

6. Would you say you had a favourite artist or piece of work within your collection? And why?
Yes, I have many favourite artists. I would say Isaac Abrams – The first psychedelic artist who had a psychedelic gallery in New York in 1965 and he was self-taught. Also Mati Klarwein has made many great record sleeves for my favourite artists over the years.

7. Is there an exhibition in this field of art that you have felt has been particularly important? And why?
“Traces du Sacré” at Centre Pompidou a few years back was mind blowing as well as one about Futurism. And an OP art one called Dynamo at Grand Palais.

The sleeve of Jais Elalouf’s next EP, an art collage by himself

8. Where would you say you buy most of your work from: a studio, art fairs, exhibitions, or direct from artists?
I would say I buy from everywhere: direct from artists, auctions, internet, flea markets often, galleries of course and when I can I visit them. Sometimes even if I know the artist well I like to support the gallery so I buy through galleries. I know everyone needs to live from it. I am an artist myself and my budget isn't huge. I spend two months of work’s wages to buy one piece of art, so it is a big sacrifice. I don’t have much space in my flat so I cannot exhibit it all at once.  

9. What sort of pieces are you looking to continue to add to your collection?
My taste is varied, eclectic & quite “Cutting edge” as I like so many different things and styles. I am really into embroidery from Iran and Pakistan as well as digital art. The psychedelic aesthetic is extremely transversal, so all fields… it could be anything. If I cannot afford an artist it is hard to talk about as I feel my heart is crushed. My way of collecting is very special because I give a lot of lectures to describe ‘psychedelism’ - you need an hour to explain it. If I have just a couple of words to explain it, you have just a tiny bit of the definition.

10. Is there a lot of your collection hung in your home, or is it hung elsewhere, or do you only exhibit several pieces at once in your home?
My flat in Paris is full of art. There are pieces everywhere and of course there is not everything I collect up on the walls. I store it and then I do exhibitions that feature it. So whenever I can do exhibitions or loan works then I try to. My idea is really to present the art and the artists I love.

11. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Recently I have been approached by the Outsider Art Fair to do an exhibition in Paris, but as the fair is very full this year then they couldn’t take it. So I’ve been digging and researching. It’s called ‘Psychedelic Outsiders’ and it will probably happen in New York now instead … we will see! Anyway I would really like to develop this and I have to be honest the pieces I have collected in the last year were outsider. A lot of people that are classed as outsider artists are doing psychedelic art, they just don’t know it. I want people to realise that psychedelic art and outsider art are linked.  

The psychedelic aesthetic has values that are humanist and these humanist values are very much needed in our times as we are destroying the planet through capitalism. I am really thinking that the way to present this art and these experiences can change the world. This is important. It is underlying. I am talking about art, but main thing is to change the world as this art connects to the soul.