Hom Nguyen

Self-taught, Hom Nguyen paints monumental portraits where the gesture counts as much as the face. The Musée du Touquet-Paris-Plage has dedicated a solo exhibition to him.

Paris, 1972

Born in Paris in 1972, he is the son of a Vietnamese refugee who arrived in France in the early 1970s and worked in hair salons. He grew up in modest conditions, raised by a mother who instilled in him courage and dignity.

A hand trained elsewhere

Self-taught, he has been drawing since the age of five and painting for eight years. He first sold shoes, then specialized in shoe patination, a technique he perfected in Tokyo, in the Shibuya district, with master tattoo artists. Upon returning to France, he dedicated himself to drawing and painting and set up his studio in Bagnolet.

The portrait as a probe

His work focuses on large-format portraiture, seeking depth rather than likeness. Pencil, charcoal, pastel, ink, and acrylic blend together, applied with an instinctive and energetic gesture in thick textures and bold colors.

Recent exhibitions

The Musée du Touquet-Paris-Plage dedicated the solo exhibition "Le fil d'Ariane" (Ariadne's Thread) to him from October 19, 2024, to May 18, 2025. This was followed by "Ma mère et moi" (My Mother and I) at the town hall of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, from February 13 to March 1, 2026, and a presentation of prints and original drawings at the Musée Jean-François Millet and the l'Angelus gallery in Barbizon, from April 24 to May 25, 2026. He has exhibited in Paris, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore.