Duca Valeria

About

Valeria Duca, born in 1995 in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, is a remarkable painter who began her artistic career at a young age. At just 12 years old, she had her first solo exhibition in her hometown, impressing with abstract works and a sense of color, and at 15, she participated in the 2011 Venice Biennale, becoming the youngest artist in the event's history and marking Moldova's debut on the international stage. Her works, which explore emotions through color and form, evoking influences of old masters, have been acquired by museums in Eastern Europe, such as the Museum of History and Archaeology of Moldova, the Museum of Visual Arts in Galati (Romania), or the Museum of East-West Art in Odesa (Ukraine). Based in Norway, where she currently lives and works in Oslo, Valeria Duca has collaborated with prestigious galleries such as Galleri Ramfjord, where she has had several solo exhibitions, including a recent one in 2023, and Panter & Hall in London, which has promoted her works through charity auctions and exhibitions like "Nine New Painters". Her style has evolved from expressive abstraction towards figurative realism with symbolic and surrealist elements, addressing themes such as mental health or humanitarian drama; in 2022, she painted Ukrainian refugees sleeping, donating the proceeds from sales to Doctors Without Borders. She studied art history at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and has participated in major events, including the Royal Society of British Artists. In her personal life, Valeria Duca married the Norwegian Martin, whom she met during her studies in the UK, and the couple lives in Oslo, where she finds art an anchor in the face of challenges, including the fear caused by the war in Ukraine, so close to Moldova. Painting remains for her a "defense mechanism" and a source of hope, allowing her to transform pain into moments of peace, as she demonstrated through volunteer projects at the Ukrainian border. Today, at 28-29 years old, she continues to exhibit and inspire, balancing the intimacy of creation with public exposure in studios open to the public.