Hugo Pondz : galerie bruno massa

HUGO PONDZ (BEL)

Born in 1975 in Casablanca, Morocco
Lives & works in Namur, Belgium

Hugo is a Belgian artist capturing urban landscapes with deep blues and luminous concrete, evoking a sense of tranquility and latent danger. In his dreams he travels to New York where he is interested in the urban landscapes and the empty, forgotten places. It is in the deep and dense blues, the luminous concrete and pools of calm and transparent waters that the artist, an observer, manages to capture the silence and impose a latent danger in a depiction which is almost minimalist in style, full of light and shadow. A subtle alchemy settles immediately between the observer and the piece where the ease of interpretation helps the observer feel part of a world, which is almost too idle. In it, children gaze towards the horizon, leading us into introspection and bringing us beyong a wall that we must all overcome one day or another. Swimming pools, golf courses, and a wide open, incredibly blue sky. The art of Hugo Pondz is full of daydreams, warmth, and lust for life. He creates a calm ambience that lures the viewer in. His unique compositions are made with minimalist shapes and vibrant colors, primarily different shades of blue. A figure looks out into the horizon, lost in thought. Their compelling gaze cultivates the viewer with desire for the dreamlike place.

A longing gaze into the distance is a motif reminiscent of the Romantics, like Caspar David Friedrich’s figure looking over a sea of fog. However, Pondz is not interested in depicting real landscapes, but rather allegorical fantasies in miraculous colors. The swimming pool could be any swimming pool, anywhere in the world, where the viewer can relax and simply marvel at the sky, perhaps get lost in their own thoughts. The Belgian artist found inspiration from the masters of minimalist sceneries and surreal ambience, specifically De Chirico, Hopper, Dalí, and Hockney. Like them, his work expresses a sense of melancholy and tranquility, but Pondz striking contrasts of light and shadow awaken a feeling of ultimate freedom, which sets him apart.

Exhibitions

2024 Fine Art Selection, Arcachon, France
2024 Art Gallery le Container, Aix en Provence, France
2024 ClassArt, Biarritz, France
2024 Galerie du Marais, Paris, France
2024 Adikt Gallery, Le Touquet, France
2024 Outsiders Gallery, Rouen, France

2023 Art Gallery, Porto Vecchio, Corse, France
2023 Galerie du Marais, Paris, France
2023 Fine Art Selection, Arcachon, France
2023 Class Art, Biarritz, France
2023 Galerie Luciani, St Malo, France

2022 Morton Contemporary, Philadelphia, USA

2020 Morton Contemporary, Philadelphia, USA
2020 Galerie du Marais, Paris, France

2019 AAF London, UK
2019 Sonia Monti, Paris, France
2019 Kazoart Paris, France
2019 ART UP LILLE, Absynth Gallery, Lille, France

2018 Coco Gallery, New York, USA

2017 Louise Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
2017 AAF Milan, Milan, Italy
2017 AAF Brussels, Brussels, Belgium
2017 Metamorphozes Gallery, Paris, France

2016 Nasau 242 Fine Arts Gallery, Antwerp, Belgium

2015 ArtFloor Gallery, Paris, France
2015 Art Basel Miami, Miami, USA
2015 Daniel Besseiche, Courchevel, France

2014 Daniel Besseiche, Geneva, Switzerland
2014 Daniel Besseiche, Knokke, Belgium
2014 Pascal Fremont, Le Havre, France
2014 Daniel Besseiche, Dinard, France
2014 Rive Gauche Gallery, Namur, Belgium

2003 Natasha Art Gallery, Knokke, Belgium

2002 Angle Aigu Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
2002 Rops Gallery, Namur, Belgium

2001 Presence Gallery, Brussels, Belgium

2000 Presence Gallery, Geneva, Switzerland
2000 Rops Gallery, Namur, Belgium

1999 Collective, Paris, France
1998 Presence Gallery, Geneva, Switzerland
1997 Presence Gallery, Brussels, Belgium

En Apesanteur
2023
Oil on canvas
80 x 120 x 3 cm - 31,5 x 47,2 x 1,2 in

La Vacuité Salutaire
2023
Oil on canvas
80 x 100 x 3 cm - 31,5 x 39,4 x 1,2 in

L'Attente du Jour
2023
Oil on canvas
100 x 100 x 3 cm - 39,4 x 39,4 1,2 in

La Seconde Éternelle
2023
Oil on canvas
80 x 120 x 3 cm - 31,5 x 47,2 x 1,2 in

La Couleur des Mers du Sud
2019
Print on Argentine paper, edition of 30
90 x 90 x 0,1 cm - 35,4 x 35,4 x 0,04 in