Hugo Duras

Hugo Duras’s brushes dart and dance with jubilation. Lines, shapes, and colors burst forth into exuberant scenes that explore both the painter’s daily life and his imaginative inner world. The line is swift, the motif dynamic. Often, primary colors set the tone—launching a jazzy, free-flowing composition, energized by an ongoing invention of recurring figures and signs, all stirred by bold, intense, yet tender hues.

Interior scenes, gardens, studios—his subjects are as whimsical as they are familiar. While the overall atmosphere might evoke something childlike or naive, these compositions lean more toward a kind of surrealist poetry. They avoid simplification or abstraction, instead playing with signs, colors, and recognizable symbols—like the components of a pictorial and narrative language unique to the artist.

Fully embracing his homage to Miró, Hugo Duras paints far from any rigid symbolism. His celebration of life is never calculated. Spontaneity, abundance, and generosity infuse his intimate scenes, portraits, objects, and ideas. One never tires of spotting a curled-up cat, a laughing child, the bright gaze of a woman, a large painting floating on a wall, a lush plant… or the painter himself in his studio. And when the drawing or form becomes more stripped down, it is color—often pure and flat—that quietly evokes an essential silhouette with serene naturalness.

The artistic and educational projects Hugo Duras designs especially for early childhood are inseparable from his practice. One clearly senses his deep human and artistic commitment to nurturing children's creative thinking, and the free, powerful imagery sparked by their emotional, sensory, and theatrical experiences—imagery that feeds directly into his own imaginative world and instinctive artistic posture.

Biography

Born in Nantes in 1975 where he currently work and live

Hugo Duras develops artistic and educational projects that are inseparable from his creative practice, specifically designed for early childhood and public spaces. As an artist-educator, trainer, and lecturer, he has been actively contributing for the past fifteen years to the development of creative and interactive pedagogy. He works with various institutions, supported by the DRAC Pays de la Loire and FRAC Bretagne.

Selected Exhibitions

Atelier-Galerie d’Art Le56 Création et exposition permanente. Nantes

2025 Galerie GAZ avec Caroline Chopin

2024 Galerie VeArte – Alicante – Espagne

2023 Galerie Maison Rouge – Belfort

Galerie Etienne De Causans – Paris

Manoir de Procé – Nantes

2022 Galerie Ploum’Expo – Ploumagoar

2019 Galerie MIRA – Nantes

2015/2018 Galerie ART ME, Nantes

2014 Centre d’Art de Caden

2009/2010 Galerie Albane – Nantes

2001 Salon International (Prix d’Honneur) – Nantes

1990 Galerie La Saline – La Turballe

Street Art – In Progress et ou in situ

Selected Projects and Residencies

2025 : Création d’une œuvre pour le Ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires étrangères –

Nantes

2023 : Performance artistique. La Nuit Du Voyage à Nantes

Résidence artistique au Lycée Franco-Hellénique – Athènes – Grèce

2021-23 : Création de fresques murales à la Maison de l’enfance et de la parentalité de Donges

2019 : Scènes duGolfe – Palais des Arts – Vannes

2016 : Résidence artistique dans « Le cube ». Projet expérimental petite enfance

Régions Auvergne/Rhône-Alpes/Languedoc-Roussillon

2014 : Performance : œuvre participative au Château de la Gobinière Nantes-Orvault

2012 Création de la signalétique du Pôle petite enfance de Chantepie en collaboration avec les Architectes VIGNAULTXFAURE Nantes

Works

Portrait de femme #2

Acrylique sur toile en lin

2025

82 × 82 cm - Encadrement tilleul massif

Portrait de femme #1

Acrylique sur toile en lin

2025

82 × 82 cm - Encadrement tilleul massif

Petit chat caché sous la table

Acrylique sur carton bois

2025

62 × 82 cm - Cadre chêne massif

La sauvageonne

Acrylique sur bois

1995

80x70cm

La jeune femme qui attendait le berger

Acrylique sur toile de lin

2025

99 × 148 cm - Cadre hêtre massif

L’oiseau bleu

Acrylique sur toile de lin

2024

100 × 100 cm - Non encadré

Jeunes femmes psychédéliques

Encre et acrylique sur carton bois collé sur bois

55 × 105 cm - Cadre intégré

Jeune femme sur le piano

Encre et acrylique sur carton bois collé sur bois

2024

87 × 147 cm - Encadrement caisse américaine intégrée

Jeune femme sur le divan

Acrylique sur toile de lin

120 × 160 cm - Cadre hêtre massif

Amour !?

Encre et acrylique sur carton bois

2024

80 × 60 cm - Cadre Nielsen alu chêne

Les autres artistes