Today we’d like to introduce you to Gwen Gunter.
Gwen, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
My career encompasses both fine and commercial arts. As a graphic artist, illustrator, photographer and successful entrepreneur, I created a line of functional art items for the home decor, gift and apparel industries.
Today I am a full-time painter based near Atlanta, Georgia. I work in acrylic on wood, paper and canvas, most often in series of a dozen or more paintings per collection.
My art practice spans representational portraiture and landscapes as well as the geometric minimalism of my current work. Moving to abstraction from objective painting, shapes emerged that brought with them an unexpected vocabulary and meaning. Originally two shapes in opposition, informed by carefully selected color, these shapes have become the impetus for my painting practice. The work continues to evolve as line becomes an increasingly important element in the dialogue making the work less flat and more dimensional.
A curved shape meets a rectilinear shape meets a solid line, and in the confluence and energy is released that informs and drives the painting. The shapes appear intuitively and may layer, merge, coalesce or repel one another as they settle in relationship on the surface of the painting. My painting process is both mystical and deliberate and has become meditative in its execution.
I earned a B.A. from Columbia College with further study at the Atlanta College of Art and Savannah College of Art and Design (Atlanta).
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
My current work centers on intuitive shapes, line and color that explore and reflect personal relationships in a metaphorical juxtaposition on the surface of the painting. These minimal shapes evolved unexpectedly about three years ago at a time when I had been making heavily layered reconstructed abstract paintings in wood. I was encouraged to investigate turning simple drawings I had been making for years into actual paintings. Though I resisted at first, once I began to delve into these drawings a whole new energy and passion emerged. I have never looked back. These shapes seemed to have been waiting in the wings for me to give them permission to come out and make their statement. They continue to evolve and take new avenues of expression while maintaining a simplicity that is at their core.
I paint in acrylic on paper, canvas and wooden panel. I hope that when people see these paintings, they will intuit the relational aspect of the shapes as they relate to one another and perhaps see themselves in these “characters” as they dance on the surface.
In your view, what is the biggest issue artists have to deal with?
The greatest challenge I think is how to navigate the multi-layered art market terrain to have the work noticed.
There are so many great artists who are working today and because of the opportunities afforded by the internet, many more are encouraged to put their work out there. This is wonderful for artists who no longer have to wait to be invited to show their work, but it also makes for a very crowded field.
This coupled with the challenges faced by brick and mortar galleries that results in fewer gallery opportunities, presents even more difficulties in finding exposure.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
Right now I have work at Kai Lin Art in Atlanta and have upcoming shows in New York at the Bowery Gallery, and the Alexandria Museum of Art in Alexandria, La.
I also have pieces available at the online gallery, Saatchiart.com and on my website Gwengunterart.com.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1487 Pinehurst Rd., Grayson, GA 30017
- Website: www.gwengunterart.com
- Phone: 4045587613
- Email: ggunterinc@comcast.net
- Instagram: @ghgunter
Image Credit:
Gwen Gunter
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