Louis Hughes
Born in Montreal in 1958, Louis Hughes began as a student of poetry and political science before turning his attention to creating renditions of the Canadian landscape. Hughes graduated from Concordia University with a degree in French Literature and minor`s political science and marketing. His painting is directly influenced by his stay in Povungnituck, a city in northern Quebec, where he was introduced to Inuit art and culture. It is this landscape and its animal inhabitants that inspire his works. Focusing on simple lines and colour blocking, an aesthetic decision often seen in Native Canadian painting and printmaking, Hughes creates scenes that are more complex than initially expected.
Hughes began exhibiting his work in 1988, steadily establishing a name for himself in the Canadian art world with his unique perspective for representing the Canadian wilderness. His paintings capture traces of the wind, the cold, thin northern trees, and birds either escaping from, or returning to their home. Hughes opens a window to vibrant life in parts of the world that are often perceived as being isolated and still. By stripping the subject down to its bare elements of representation Hughes is able to focus on movement, narrative and strength of color.
Throughout his career, Hughes has received numerous awards and honours and has served as a representative for Canadian art in the United States. Gaining notoriety at home and abroad, his work is now a part of many private and corporate collections within the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. |
