Lauriane Itoua (Lylo)

Lylo, born in 1986 in Saint Petersburg to Congolese and Bulgarian parents, is a self-taught painter based in France. With just one year of formal training at the Bellecour school, she developed her approach independently through practice and observation. Her work centers on anonymous figures—archetypes such as the angel, the father and child, or passersby—drawn from everyday encounters. Lylo paints by layering white over black, focusing on light rather than shadow to reveal her subjects. For her, the Black figure represents a mystical, internal presence rooted in her mixed heritage rather than a political statement.