ABOUT GESSNER STUDIO

Artist’s Statement

“An artist paints what others do not see. Therefore, paints what is not what is suppose to be.”

Watercolor usually lends itself to fluidity and vagueness, but I choose to use it to express emotion and spirituality resulting in boldly defined colors, often set next to each other offering the viewer a dramatic and ethereal invitation to explore the painting further.

I believe that all of life is a spiritual journey. One can only appreciate the light that life has to offer by contrasting it to the dark. My subjects are portrayed with an aura of spirituality that seems to transcend the merely religious. I believe that one should continually endeavor to reach the “light” of human consciousness. I choose to do this with paint and paper. Both a teacher and mentor, I encourage my students to maximize and perform at their highest creative potential.

Although I have won numerous awards throughout the United States, including the prestigious World’s Fair Best of Show and am represented in major collections, I choose to believe that the most important gift you can give yourself is using your God-given talent in the service of others. The more you offer your talents to society, the more “light” flows in.

The Integrity of the Forest peaked my interest right from the start. What did this poetic phrase mean? How would I represent this statement in a visual, painterly style? Then it came to me while walking with my dog, a golden retriever named Jake, at Battis Farm a local trail and woodland area in Amesbury, Massachusetts.
In the early sunlit morning after a four inch snowfall, I was taken by the cast shadows of a clump of birch and an old oak tree on the new fallen snow. How pure, unadulterated and unaffected the glistening snow presented itself to the first human to view its tranquil beauty. I paused for a moment to consider the story that this told. My dog Jake seemed to sense the need for stillness as he also stood right beside me, turning his head from side to side as if to determine if a small animal might be lurking in the shadows.
Although I did not have my camera with me that morning, I came back later in the day to catch on a digital card this spiritual experience. Much to my dismay, footprints, both human and animal, had disturbed this visual display of nature. But, being an artist, I captured the first early morning image in my mind’s eye and knew, with the help of a photo, I could recreate this scene in watercolor and hopefully convey the real meaning of “new-fallen snow” and the Integrity of the Forest.
This was painted for a New England Forestry Association competition title "The Integrity of the Forest"