Hugo Valentine – born 1961 – London.
Returning to the ‘Show, Tell and Sell’ process after 25 years absence. He has been working but not showing or selling. Themes are women, love, beauty, imperfection and intimacy. Trained as a portrait artist, his work attempts to put the viewer into the presence of the subject. He desires that a two way connection and recognition is made – a Seeing, even though the paintings are often heavily abstracted with a pop art feel. Valentine’s strongest influences are Modigliani, Picasso and Henri Rousseau.
To his great shame, in the early 1980’s, Valentine dropped out of a prestigious London Academy of Art, on the brink of completion. His hypnotized heart took him to India chasing a ‘muse’ girl. He currently works as a technical 3D artist in the area of Virtual and Augmented Reality, while also dedicating himself to exploring the Art of Digital, the New Art, seeking fluid and provocative techniques that maintain and reveal the hand of the artist. Refusing to be restricted to the realm of acrylics and oils, Valentine embraces the pixel.