Hernan Bas, born in Miami, Florida, in 1978, is an American artist of Cuban descent whose work is deeply rooted in the romantic and melancholic imagery of the 19th century. Educated at the New World School of the Arts in Miami, his talent was quickly recognized with accolades such as the McCullough Award for Painting in 1999 and the Rema Hort Foundation Grant in 2002. Bas draws inspiration from the Symbolist movement and the decorative elegance of Les Nabis, crafting a visual language that references the works of literary figures like Oscar Wilde and Joris-Karl Huysmans. His paintings often feature androgynous male dandies, portrayed in introspective or enigmatic settings, suspended in a liminal space between adolescence and adulthood. These figures inhabit lush, dreamlike landscapes imbued with implicit sensuality and ambiguous erotism, inviting the viewer into an intimate world both timeless and otherworldly.
Bas’ solo shows have been exhibited in venues such as Galerie Perrotin in France and Tokyo, Lehmann Maupin in the United States, and the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo Málaga in Spain. His works have also been featured at the Brooklyn Museum, the Bass Museum of Art, and other institutions across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. A retrospective in 2012 at the Kunstverein in Hanover, Germany, cemented his reputation on the global stage. Beyond exhibitions, Bas’s paintings are part of esteemed collections, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art, as well as international holdings like the Saatchi Collection in London and the Art Gallery of Ontario in Canada.
Now splitting his time between Miami and Detroit, where his studio is located, Bas continues to explore themes of beauty, identity, and desire. His Detroit studio, housed in a vibrant artistic enclave, reflects the dynamic and interdisciplinary energy that fuels his creative practice.
