Valentine Hugo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Valentine Hugo
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| Born |
Valentine Gross
16 March 1887 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France
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| Died | 1968 (aged 80–81) Paris, France
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| Nationality | French |
| Known for | Illustration |
| Movement | Surrealism |
| Spouse(s) |
Jean Hugo
(m. 1919, divorced) |
Valentine Hugo (1887–1968) was a talented French artist and writer. She was born Valentine Marie Augustine Gross in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France. She is famous for her work with the Russian ballet and with the French Surrealist art movement. Valentine Hugo passed away in Paris.
Contents
Early Life and Art Training
Valentine Hugo's mother, Zélie, raised her alone after her husband passed away.
Valentine went to school in Boulogne-sur-Mer. She won many awards for her drawing skills there until 1907. After that, she joined the L'École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. She also worked at the Académie Humbert. Her art was shown in the Salon of French artists in 1909 and again in 1911. In 1908, Valentine met artist Edmond Aman-Jean. He painted her picture in 1909 and encouraged her to keep making art.
Working with Ballets Russes
Valentine Hugo started working with the Ballets Russes, a famous Russian ballet company. This led her to meet Jean Cocteau, a well-known French artist and writer. Cocteau introduced her to many important people. One of them was her future husband, Jean Hugo (1894–1984). He was the great-grandson of the famous writer Victor Hugo.
Valentine and Jean worked together on ballet designs. This included Les mariés de la tour Eiffel (1921). In 1926, she made 24 wood engravings for Jean Cocteau's play Roméo et Juliette. Working with the ballets helped Valentine grow as an artist. She often sketched the dancers and their movements. She was especially interested in the dancer and choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky. In 1913, she showed her paintings at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. This was during the first show of The Rite of Spring ballet.
Hugo and Cocteau also created the ballet Parade, which first showed on May 18, 1917. Valentine also worked on other ballets by Satie, such as Le Piège de Méduse, Socrate, and Mercure.
Valentine Hugo often hosted gatherings at her home in Paris. Many artists, writers, and musicians came, including famous figures like Pablo Picasso, André Breton, and Paul Éluard. She would often sketch her visitors. This was a hint of her later work drawing portraits of Surrealist leaders.
Valentine and the Surrealists
Valentine Hugo met André Breton in 1917, even before the Surrealist art movement officially began. Her friendships with Breton and Paul Éluard kept her connected to the Surrealists as the group grew. These friendships also helped her meet other members, like Salvador Dalí and Max Ernst. Valentine, Breton, and Éluard often traveled together in 1931 and 1932. Valentine was the only one in the group who owned a car, so she drove them to their destinations.
Valentine and Jean Hugo started living separately in 1926. They later divorced in 1932. Being separated from her husband gave Valentine more freedom to be part of the Surrealist group. In May 1932, she moved into the same building as Éluard and Breton.
Hugo joined the Bureau of Surrealist Research. She created a piece called Objet à fonctionnement symbolique (1931). This was shown at the Exposition surréalistic in 1933. She also took part in other art shows while with the group. One notable exhibition was at the Museum of Modern Art in 1936.
Valentine and the Exquisite Corpse
Valentine Hugo played the "exquisite corpse" game with the Surrealists. This was a fun drawing game where different people added to a drawing without seeing what others had done. She worked on drawings with Breton, Éluard, and many others. These drawings often looked like illusions, thanks to Valentine's artistic touch. She also brought new materials to the game, using paint (gouache) on black paper for her drawings.
Her Connection with André Breton
Valentine Hugo and André Breton had a close friendship. This friendship was important for her involvement in the Surrealist movement. They worked together on many projects and shared ideas. Their connection helped shape some of her most interesting work during this time.
Later Years and Artworks
In 1943, Valentine Hugo's art was shown in Peggy Guggenheim's exhibition called Exhibition by 31 Women. This show was at the Art of This Century gallery in New York. After World War II, she went back to designing for stage performances. She also kept creating her paintings "in secret," enjoying the surprise of how they turned out. In 1948, she finished a portrait of Pablo Picasso that she had started in 1934.
Valentine Hugo passed away on March 16, 1968, which was her 81st birthday.
Illustrations
Valentine Hugo was mostly known for her drawings. She used fine lines against dark backgrounds to create detailed and layered designs. Her portraits of leading Surrealist artists are very interesting. She also illustrated books for writers like Rene Char and Paul Éluard. Another notable work was for Achim von Arnim's Strange Tales, which had an introduction by Breton in 1933. She was a main illustrator for Paul Éluard's books. She first showed her work with the Surrealists at the Salon des Surindépendants in 1933.
Some of her famous illustrations include:
- Comte de Lautréamont's Les Chants de Maldoror (1933)
- Achim von Arnim's Contes bizarres (1933)
- Arthur Rimbaud's Les Poètes de sept ans (1938)
- Paul Éluard's Les Animaux et leurs hommes (1937)
- Roger Peyrefitte's Les amitiés particulières (1946)
Exhibitions
A special show of Valentine Hugo's work was held at the Centre Culturel Thibaud de Champagne in Troyes in 1977.
Her art has also been shown in other places, including: Tenerife (1935), Copenhagen (1935), New York (1937), and Tokyo (1937).
See also
In Spanish: Valentine Hugo para niños
