About

Hana Bleue Chaussette is a pseudonym which may explain what is omitted in this unusual bio, however, beyond dispute is that her body of work as a conceptual artist reveals the profound and fundamental influence of her years as an expat in Asia. One clear example: her repeated use of multiple images and text as “building blocks” of meaning—-the direct result of her knowledge of Chinese and Japanese written languages and Asian aesthetics and philosophy.

Visual art can also have its own etymology just like any language, but for Chaussette, the work is not only meant to be read and understood, but also “felt.” For this reason, objet trouve, memory and storytelling in general, are among her most frequently used tools. Like an anthropologist, her process is to take a deep dive into the lives of her subjects, interviewing and even embedding herself into their world—- for a day, a week or longer. This determines the form the work will take—- whether the result is a painting, sculpture, short story or even a performance. Alarmed by the effects of the Digital Age combined with a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, Chaussette now believes her urgent challenge is to continue to find new ways to instill empathy and a sense of connection in her viewers. Figurative and public art serve this purpose well.

Chaussette received a scholarship at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and studied in the UK, Duke University and Osaka University of Arts in Japan. She is a founder of Atelier 54 Chicago with four women artists from France and Mexico. The influence of her work as an artist-turned-journalist in radio and television can be seen in her public art series, “Unsung Heroes: Art of People on the Streets IN the Streets,” exhibited in JCDecaux bus shelters the summer of 2024 in Chicago and now on display online.