Abstract and figurative artist Gloria Gaddis has been creating beautiful paintings for many years here in the valley of the sun, amassing an impressive career thus far.
Gaddis’s work offers a tension and energy created through her use of lines juxtaposed by her vivid colors and organic shapes that result in work those entrances the viewer through its sophisticated simplicity. When asked about her work Gaddis states, “that her paintings are created with a process of becoming; it involves risks and rewards; tangible and intangible ideas; plus my work incorporates the universal and personal (subjective & objective) into a single view.”
Her abstract works focus on graphic lines, bold uses of space and dramatic color palettes, while her figurative works are intriguing, vibrant and relatable evident in such works as “Color Field #4” and “Seated Figure”. Her monotypes are quite enchanting highlighting simplistic forms, strong colors, and interesting lines reminiscent of early abstract expressionism as seen in “Expanded Boundaries.” Gaddis goes on to say, “we all return to what we know and in the process, we may see something NEW in ourselves, our times or our culture; this is the way it is with my work, elements of surprise, transitions of color and movement, and struggles between chaos and calm.”
Currently she is preparing for a major retrospective of her work, which she has titled “Harmony” that will be exhibited at Scottsdale’s Gebert Contemporary Art Gallery November 3rd, 2016. The artist shared some of her work, the most striking a triptych titled: "Changing Place", each measuring 48 x 48 created out of what she describes as the aftermath of 9-11. This fascinating works highlight a patriotic color palette, “working during that summer, it was chaos on my street, while also reflecting the horror on TV and when I saw that iconic black structure in the debris of the Twin Towers with all the dust and destruction around it, I literally put that shape into my abstract painting and called it "Changing Place - #1,2,3” referring to what the artists says “Things change and yet they never change”.
Gaddis was born in Detroit Michigan, connecting with art early on, going on to university where she was traditionally trained in the arts, receiving her Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Minnesota. After completing her MFA Gaddis went on to teach drawing and painting as the Adjunct Faculty at Scottsdale Community College. She has continued to pursue her art establishing her career and finding representation with several art galleries around the nation including Gebert Contemporary Art, Sue Greenwood Fine Art Gallery, Mikel Hunter Gallery and Nieto Fine Art Gallery. Gaddis’s work is widely collected in both public and private collections and her artwork has garnered many awards over the years.
Gaddis has exhibited work throughout the nation at both galleries and museums including the Phoenix Art Museum, Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum, Shemer Art Center, Burton Barr Library, Udinotti Museum of Figurative Art, and Fitchburg Museum, just to name a few. She was recently invited to exhibit her work “Color Fields 11” in the Artlink 18th Annual Juried Exhibition held at the Heard Museum where she was awarded Second place and cash prize from Baron Properties, juried by esteemed artist Fred Tieken, Gallery Owner Nancy Hill, and Heard Curator Ann Marshall. Her artwork has been featured in numerous publications both online and in print including AZ Lifestyle Magazine, Orange Coast Magazine, Phoenix Home & Garden, Design & Architecture, just to name a few.
Mark your calendars for “Harmony”, Gaddis’s retrospective exhibition opening next month on November 3rd at Gebert Contemporary Gallery. Experience an incredible array of artwork and have the opportunity to meet the artist and hear more about her work. Learn more about artist Gloria Gaddis and her artwork by visiting her online at her website http://gloriagaddis.com/. *Images are courtesy and copyright of artist Gloria Gaddis.
