ERIC GIBBONS
The Box Series

The combination of linear architecture and the soft figure inspired The Box Series. It evolved as a result of my journey to Paris and endless days spent at the Louvre. I was drawn to the exquisite sculptures which were cleverly implanted in small niches throughout the museum. It was through that stimulus, my love for classical subjects: biblical, mythological and societal, and my own personal history, that gave birth to The Box Series.

From a distance, the work can seem photographic. However, one can appreciate skilled brushwork that came from years of Asian studies in calligraphy, brush-painting, origami and Aikido.

It is my goal to one day present an installation of at least 100 figures in boxes within a museum space. These paintings are modules with that goal in mind.

ARTISTIC STATEMENT

Often derived from classical themes found in the Bible and mythology, The Box Series works are a shadow of my own introspection. I claim them as my environment and visual voice. One figure confronts while another recedes. One may welcome your gaze, while another may flatly reject you. The limited color, subject and space create powerfully focused and profound iconic images which are rooted in and influenced by the classical works of Michelangelo, Ing and Neo Classic artist, Jacques-Louis David.

After painting the classical figure for years, this particular series was inspired by a 2004 trip to Paris and long days spent at the Louvre. The calligraphic brushwork is critically important to the execution of the work, its expressive nature and underlying compositional impact. The Box Series has become the anchor for my message and the framework of my current work. It is the package that separates my figures from the world at large and my art from other modern painting masters.

"As we figuratively create boxes to put people in . . .
I create figures and put them in boxes." E. Gibbons

BIO

E. Gibbons is a fourth generation artist who began to draw before he was able to speak. He attended the College of New Jersey, and currently teaches art in a public high school. He studied fine art in Japan at Kansai University of Osaka, where he was thoroughly immersed in Asian painting techniques. Not only is he an accomplished painter, but also a talented ceramist, photographer, published Origami Master, blacksmith and inventor.

Gibbons founded the Firehouse Gallery of Bordentown, New Jersey in 1994, which has since become his private studio. He is represented by galleries in the USA and western Europe. His work has been seen in ArtNEWS Magazine, Blue+ Magazine, and Bruno Gmunder Press (Germany). Some of the cities in which this prolific artist has been exhibited include Paris, London, New York, Seattle, Osaka, Provincetown, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Seattle and Alexandria, Egypt.

Gibbons, an avid world traveler, has visited and lived in many countries including Japan, Korea, Egypt, Bulgaria, France, Greece, Israel and Mexico. These experiences have shaped his artistic sensibilities and the multicultural focus of his work.