Ginny Gaura
Contact:
Artist Statement:
Ginny Gaura is a lifelong resident of the Chicago area. After successful careers as a graphic designer and photographer, she returned to her major in graduate school, painting. Also an accomplished writer, she is a published poet and the author of an upcoming book on spiritual guidance entitled “Look Within”. She is one of the Gallery 44 artists whose art studios are located on the second floor of 50 E Galena Blvd in downtown Aurora.
Education:
BFA, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL
Major: Illustration with Graphic Design and Photography
Graduate Work, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL
Major: Painting
Associations:
Member of the Chicago Artists Coalition
Current Exhibition:
Water Street Gallery
160 W Wilson
Batavia, Illinois
Previous Art Exhibitions
November 22, 2008, Gallery 44
Fall Open House of Studio Artists
Aurora, Illinois
September 26 – 28, 2008, Chicago Arts District
38th Annual Pilsen East Artists’ Open House
Chicago, Illinois
August 7 – September 7, 2008, Fusion Gallery
Small Works Show
Collingswood, New Jersey
April 24 – 28, 2008, Merchandise Mart
The Artist Project
Part of Artropolis, in conjuntion with Art Chicago
Chicago, Illinois
November 2007, Gallery 44
Fall Open House of Studio Artists
Aurora, Illinois
August 25 – September 2007, Art House
A Million Little Pictures Show – Volume II
Decatur, Georgia
July 21 – August 29, 2007, Norris Gallery
Gallery 44 Artists Show
St Charles, Illinois
April 13 – July 2007, River Breeze Gallery
Peace Show
Aurora, Illinois
May 25 – June 2007, Art House
A Million Little Pictures Show – Volume I
Decatur, Georgia
April – May 2007, High Risk Gallery
All Good Things Show
Chicago, Illinois
January 2007, Morpho Gallery
Emerging Artists Show
Chicago, Illinois
November 2006, Gallery 44
Fall Open House of Studio Artists
Aurora, Illinois
April 2005, Art Around the Fox
Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley
Aurora, Illinois
November 2004, Gallery 44
Fall Open House of Studio Artists
Aurora, Illinois
April 2004, Art Around the Fox
Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley
Aurora, Illinois
November 2003, Olcott Gallery
Solo Show
Theosophical Society of America
Wheaton, Illinois
April 2003, Art Around the Fox
Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley
Aurora, Illinois
November 2002, Gallery 44
Fall Open House of Studio Artists
Aurora, Illinois
April 2002, Art Around the Fox
Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley
Aurora, Illinois
Medium: Painting: Oils, acrylics, and watercolors (I am submitting my newest works with this application)
Description: For me, the process of painting is a journey. It is traversed with prior knowledge, experimentation and discovery. There are times when everything comes together in a piece and it is a success, but there are also times when nothing is working and the painting must be put aside and sometimes finished months or years later, looking nothing at all like the original. That is the glory of life, the unexpected serendipitous event, the mistake that helps us grow, the moment where a decision must be met. This is life with all its mystery and through it I approach my art.
My innate curiosity leads me to experiment with new techniques and media. Constantly challenging myself to create new ideas, I’m always pushing my art to the next level. Never content with creating conventional artwork, I seek out new ideas, allowing me to grow and discover. If used as such, art can be a process of self-discovery and trans-formation.
When beginning a piece, I usually have no preconceived notions of the finished work. There might be a idea of general form or colors I choose to use but is the process that fascinates me, the ever-changing creation which grows as I paint. In my Dreamscape Series, which is composed of mostly oil paintings and some acrylics, I experiment with color, mixing paint directly upon the canvas rather than the traditional palette. I am not always satisfied with the result, so sometimes I paint over them, producing new works which many times incorporate the written word.
I often take photographs of surface images like brick walls and cracked pavement and experiment with surface forms through mixed media pieces. Due to circumstances, I have begun painting small watercolors because of their size and portability. In them I draw on top of the paintings with ink to create pieces that resemble stain glass works.
I feel compelled to work in the realm of abstraction and non-representation. A regular meditation practitioner, I am inspired by shifting consciousness which gives rise to patterns, shapes and ideas, forever changing into something different. I aspire to make the unseen seen, to make aware in the viewer that which is often overlooked.
