Meet Colette Hebert | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Colette Hebert and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Colette, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
Dancing tango and helping other discover their passion for it!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Creating art for me is a plunge into the soul. The challenge is to put the entire emotional truth into the image. Art opens the door and takes me into something bigger than myself and brings a great sense of freedom.  I like to explore femininity and sensuality through elements beyond classic imagery. Expressionistic, by definition, with contemporary approaches, to eternal fantasy or perhaps perpetual dream. I’m identified with passionate treatment of movement. not any kind of movement, but specifically the sensual and delicate movement of the female body, it connotes women with power. sometimes just at the limit of the figurations and just before the abstract explosion. To put a label, It is a kind of “new figuration”

Most people today associate me with Argentine tango. This is because at the hight of my success as a painter I choose a new medium and I choose to paint with my feet. As an artist I am drawn to emotions and in tango you can find a physical and sensual exchange with emotiontional connectrion through the intimacy of  your partner. Combination of trust, great respect and feeling of being elevated with a vast bouquet of human emotions. My friends at the time thought I was crazy to give up my successful career as an artist but I needed to follow my heart and it was leading me to tango. So during the day I was creating and selling my art in all the different galleries that represented my work  and at night I would dance tango, learning wherever I am,  from the best Maestros from Argentina.. By chance I had met my dance partner, my new blank canvas, and within 3 years of training together we became the US tango champions and finalist at the world tango championships in Buenos Aires. You can view our tango promo video here in case you are interested: http://bit.ly/TangoPromoCH

ast forward to 30 years and I have been teaching tango at my dance studio in San Diego CA. With each student being my new blank canvas. One day one of my student, an art connoisseur, who later become my dance partner, when she discovered my artistic background as a painter, she immediately commissioned me a painting ready for her coming birthday. Talking of struggle…how am I supposed to remember how to paint after 20 years of not touching my paint brushes. . My hand will not know how to move! I was terrified with the idea and it took me 2 long years before one day I decided to sit and try. To my surprise, not only I was able to do it but what a happy experience. I didn’t know how happy I am when I paint I was so thankful by her request it felt like a resurrection. She was delighted by my gift to her! http://bit.ly/YMgift2019

Then Covid happened, and now with the pandemic I have the time to be fully back with my painting but this time with more maturity.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Some of my favorite go to places in San Diego are The Rose Wine bar for a little ten ten pie or cosy dinner their empanadas bring back to Buenos Aires.

For a sunset cocktail I would bring them to Catania in La Jolla their espresso martini is the best in town and for dinner my favorite restaurant at the moment is Callie.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to thank my partner Katerina. It was her encouragement and support that brought me back to my paint brushes.

Website: https://www.colettehebertstudio.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colette_hebert_galerie/