Interview: Hugo Féria

In conversation with artist Hugo Féria who lives and works in Setúbal, Portugal.

www.hugoferia.com
@hugoferia

What was your journey into the arts?

Well, since I was a child I always liked to draw, over time I developed this way of expression, then I went to the University of Fine Arts in Lisbon and from then on it evolved naturally. I was trying to create my own language, which expresses my view of the world around me.

It was in pop art that I found my space.

Your work is influenced by your surroundings and experiences, can you expand on this? You refer to it starting from a pop language from which you create stories, can you expand on this?

I am a person who tries to be attentive to what is going on in the world and around me, all of this influences my work, it can be the news of the world, historical facts, personal experiences, people who cross my life, dramatic love stories , other artists, music, books… Anyway, I think everything can be a subject for my work.

Most of the time, with some irony and using pop language, to make it more accessible to everyone.

What is your working pattern like? How do you work?

There is usually a subject that catches my attention, I do some research on it, some sketches in drawing and then I pass my idea onto the canvas

How does drawing help you think through ideas?

Drawing helps me a lot to structure ideas, before I start to paint, I make several compositions in drawing and then I pass to the canvas the one that seems most interesting to me, other times I use drawing as the final result, when I think painting does not add nothing more than what I imagined.

Do you use a sketchbook or journal? If so, can you talk about how you use this. Is it or your sketches a record of what you do or does it inform your approach and thinking?

I don’t usually draw in sketchbook or diary, because I prefer to draw in larger formats and also because I only like to draw in the studio or at home, so I don’t miss a more portable support.