Stephen Gamson
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Gamson at his Miami Studio -
"At the Table with a Flower" Gamson Banner being installed on the Wynwood Art Complex in Miami, FL.
Stephen Gamson [7] (artist) b.1965 American. A passionate art enthusiast and uniquely talented artist, Gamson’s career trajectory has been quite unlike most of his colleagues. He exhibited an early acuity with color, shape, texture and style. He spent much of his youth in studios, museums, and researching art through books.
Over the years, his passion for art-making was tempered by a quest for knowledge and a continuous effort to hone his formidable eye. Often his creativity was best expressed through fruitful exchanges with art dealers, gallerists, museum curators, collectors and artist colleagues with whom he has developed longstanding relationships. As a student and on a shoe-string budget, Stephen Gamson began collecting the work of artists he admired. Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Indiana and others were seminal in his development, and, therefore, became central to his collecting efforts.
Perhaps, one of the most important criteria Gamson looks for in collecting art is the same one he is most critical of in his own work. That is, “will it pass the test of time?” He believes that art should serve as a cultural marker depicting life and everything that it encompasses within a time frame.
After post-graduate studies in art history at Harvard University, in the early 1990’s, Gamson had a one man show at the Candide Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia. Since that time, he has continued to develop his body of work to become the artist he is today. While conceptual in nature, there is a sophisticated underlying message found in each one of Stephen Gamson’s compositions. The symbols in his work represent the human race. His paintings and sculptures portray events inseparable from daily life. Minimal in style, Gamson strives to distill forms to convey a message that is truly universal. His hope is to imbue imagery with a familiarity that enables it to breakdown socio-economic barriers and reunite cultures throughout the world. Gamson sees his art as the most basic language in our world today – a tool and a shorthand for communication.
Many high profile individuals and institutions are proud to have Gamson artwork in their collections. On January 26, 2008, a show including 29 of his acrylic on canvas paintings was on display at Gallery Jax in Miami.[1] In 2004, Gamson was the featured artist for the Nautica Project. This permanent show includes his creation of two aluminum sculptures, a 30’wide x 5’high mural and numerous paintings depicting life on Miami Beach. He is currently represented by Rebecca Hossack Gallery in London and Seth Jason Beitler Fine Arts [2] in Miami. He displayed his latest work at an exhibition that opened on August 7th, 2008 at DeBillzan Gallery in Laguna Beach, California, and had a solo show in the Projects room at the Frank Pictures Gallery, in Santa Monica, CA, which opened on October 9th 2009 [3].
Stephen Gamson has served on the board of directors for many organizations such as The Jackson Metropolitans (a division of The Jackson Memorial Hospital Foundation), The Shakers advisory board for The Museum of Contemporary Art in North Miami, Hugs and Kisses at The Miami Childrens Hospital, The AJ Japour Art Gallery and Foundation, and is one of the founding members of Art for a Cause. He also supports many other worthy organizations by donating artwork and volunteering his time.
In early December, for Art Basel 2008, Stephen will have a solo show titled “Symbols and Portraits” at the Seth Jason Beitler Gallery in Wynwood. In addition he will participate in a group exhibit at the Red Dot Show, debuting his aluminum outdoor sculpture “Girl Under an Umbrella”. Also in Wynwood he will be in a group show at the Puzzlement Gallery[4] with his iconic paintings. Gamson is excited about a 70’x40’ banner he is creating for this year’s Art Basel that will be showcased in the Wynwood Art District.
Gamson was tapped to be the official artist for Café Bustelo. His artwork will appear internationally as Bustelo rolls out 100 retail stores.[5] 2009 promises to be a big year for Stephen Gamson, as he has been commissioned to create large scale, high-profile projects in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. He has also been selected as the official poster artist for the 35th Annual Miami Beach Festival of the Arts in early February.[6].