The MEP is honoured to present the first solo exhibition in France by Tyler Mitchell, a leading figure in his generation of contemporary photography, from 15 October 2025 to 25 January 2026. Entitled Wish This Was Real, the exhibition explores the artist's major themes: self-determination and the extraordinary beauty embedded in everyday life.

Mitchell is driven by dreams of paradise against the backdrop of history. His images propel a visual narrative of beauty, style, utopia, and the landscape that expands visions of Black life and shows how portraiture can be rooted in the past while evoking imagined futures. Wish This Was Real covers ten years of Mitchell’s dynamic artistic practice in photography, video, and sculpture, demonstrating the influence of the “New Black Vanguard” – the proliferation of images by Black photographers who work across genres of fashion and art. From portraits made in the United States, Europe, and West Africa to his latest prints on fabric and mirrors, he traces photography’s vital role in shaping a visual realm in which refuge and repose are central.

Wish This Was Real considers Mitchell’s work in three thematic sections that follow his artistic evolution. In “Lives/Liberties,” his early influences and immersion in skateboarding culture are reflected in images that pursue a dream of leisure, community, and self-expression amid societal unrest, including an early video, Wish This Was Real (2015), a startling and atmospheric reflection on innocence and political turmoil in contemporary America. In “Postcolonial/Pastoral,” reveries of paradise are underscored by the complexities of history and social identity, as Mitchell stages elaborate scenes in nature that invite contemplation through vibrant landscapes and symbolic references. “Family/Fraternity” celebrates the resilience and heritage of Black communities through intimate family portraits and still lifes, portraying the home as a sanctuary.

The exhibition Tyler Mitchell — Wish This Was Real is curated by Brendan Embser and Sophia Greiff, in collaboration with Clothilde Morette, curator and artistic director of the MEP. This exhibition is organised and produced by the C/O Berlin Foundation in collaboration with Tyler Mitchell Studios and made possible with the support of the Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne.