WEN2

Wen2: between urbanism and visual poetry

Wen2 (Gwendal HUET) is a Brest-based artist born in 1976. Inspired by hip-hop culture, he began expressing himself on the walls of Brest at a young age, working with various local crews and collectives. Trained in applied arts, he also pursued a professional career in urban planning and architecture for nearly 20 years alongside his artistic endeavors. Since 2021, Wen2 has been fully dedicated to his painting.

He has a natural talent for depicting the city—its textures, framework, and structures—combining technical expertise with aesthetic intelligence. Aware of our rapidly changing world and a self-proclaimed collapsologist at times, he draws inspiration directly from his environment.

With finesse and sensitivity, Wen2 critiques excessive industrialization and mass consumption (waste, nuclear energy, the decline of civilization, concrete cities, ecocides, etc.) by giving a second life to the elements that shape them—containers, rusted trains, abandoned sites, and more.

Balancing his time between family, his artistic community, his studio, and the streets, he poetically captures his reality.

Naturally, Wen2 creates realistic urban landscapes, meticulously respecting their structural framework while adding his signature touch. He enjoys portraying floating structures and suspended worlds that sometimes feel uprooted, blending the present with remnants of the past. This approach brings a sense of dreaminess and timelessness to urban landscapes, inviting the viewer to travel, dream, and imagine as their gaze wanders across his artwork.