Despite our fierce differences, all human beings have two inescapable elements that we cannot escape: destiny and origin are what we have in common and what painter Gustavo Duque's exhibition seeks to capture. 

The communication between the outside landscape and everything that lives in our intrinsic world are in constant harmony and debate and it is these counterpoints from which the artist's work is derived, which is being exhibited from November to January 15, 2023 in Europe House – The First House of Europe in Latin America, a fabulous venue that creates cultural exchanges.

For Gustavo, having the opportunity to exhibit in San Miguel is considered an honor to be in these warm lands surrounded by friendly faces and art lovers in a place that undoubtedly makes him feel at home, in his “beloved Mexico.” 

It is no coincidence that Gustavo's paintings are a kind of sublime geographical map of the places he has visited and that have inspired him. He is always looking up at the snowy or pinkish skies and so a large part of his emotional landscapes are encompassed by the firmament. 

These divine ochre tones of San Miguel and semi-desert earth tones can be seen portrayed in his small format paintings inspired by our city. Such admiration for our emotional lands are captured in different ways by the viewer who perceives in them love, abandonment or happiness depending on the emotional state of the admirer of the work. 

Another factor that distinguishes Gustavo's work is the use of human figures that coexist with the sky in which they are painted, taking over the space in their own way, either by moving through it, appropriating it or wanting to vanish as if they themselves were clouds. 

In one of the series of paintings that we will be able to see in “Destiny and Origin” created in New Orleans in 2018, we will be able to see phrases such as “Of all paths you take in life make sure a few of them are dirt” or “What is infinite? The Universe and the greed of men” that invite us to reflect on the process of manipulation that humans can be victims of when we are not sure about what we want. 

A reflective work, a circular work where you will end up in the same place where you started but certainly not in the same way. Your gaze will be different and so will your soul in this great pictorial return where the beginning bites the tail of the end and vice versa.

Exhibition 17/11/2022 – 15/01/2023
House of Europe, San Francisco 23, Center
www.gustavoduque.com