Lou Patrou is an American-born fine artist based in the Hudson Valley region of New York, near New York City.
A lifelong creative who has been drawing since childhood, Lou attended the U.S. Naval Schools of Photography in Pensacola, Florida, after high school and went on to serve as a NAVY filmmaker in an elite motion picture unit called Combat Camera Group, based in Norfolk, Virginia. Following his service, he moved to Hollywood, California, where he worked on various shows, commercials, documentaries, and feature films. During his years in Hollywood, he also worked in prop houses and large event production companies on major projects including Disney & MTV shows and the Academy Awards. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, he continued drawing and painting between film industry projects. In 2000, Lou left Hollywood and returned east to pursue his art full time.
"I have been drawing and painting faces and figures since the mid 1960s and have a portfolio that spans five decades. Over time the faces became more and more stylized and I eventually began adding design elements into them and styling compositions with them."
Lou’s work defies easy categorization. He does not adhere to a single artistic language or predictable direction. Some pieces are whimsical and colorful with a strong design sensibility, others are serious black-and-white surrealist works, while some lean into iconic pop aesthetics. His hard-edge paintings are often mistaken for digital graphic work, though they are meticulously painted by hand. His compositions may appear simple at first glance, but each shape is obsessively refined and every detail carefully considered.
Lou has exhibited his work in galleries across New York City, San Diego, Los Angeles, upstate New York, New Orleans, Miami, and London. His work has been featured in over 40 art and design magazines and books globally. His artwork has appeared in the London Tube, in the annual New York City Designer’s Show, on outdoor billboards in Times Square (NY), New Orleans during Mardi Gras, Miami during Art Week, and on a public building in Kokomo, Indiana.
In addition to creating new artworks, Lou has been developing a catalog of properties and brands for apparel and lifestyle licensing. His designs have been showcased at SURTEX in New York City and at the Licensing Expo in Las Vegas.
Websites: www.patrou.com www.hankandsylvie.com
