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Giles Gilson, “Traveling Vessel” 1984

Currency:USD Category:Art / Movement - 20th century Start Price:100.00 USD Estimated At:1,600.00 - 2,000.00 USD
Giles Gilson, “Traveling Vessel” 1984
“Traveling Vessel” created by Giles Gilson in 1984, in mahogany, corian, brass & paint, measuring 4” h x 4 3/4” w x 7” d
Gilson created this work for Dr. Irving Lipton, to make it easy for him to always have one of his works with him.

Giles Gilson (1952-2015)
Giles Gilson's interests stretched beyond woodturning. Along with his engineering background, he designed, built, and flew radio controlled aircraft. Jazz and his work with theater and stage design heavily influenced his work. He combined all of these experiences when he approached the lathe. Gilson led the avant-garde impulse in wood turning, by employing paint and mixed-media approaches that try to disguise the wood.
Embracing and interpreting both the mechanical and natural world with a distinctive vision, Giles Gilson related his experiences with an appreciation for the graphic, tactile and dynamic.
"I've found that manmade devices often have the same forms and shapes as biological entities," the artist explained of his dual interests. "This is because the shapes are necessary to the function."
Although Gilson's works might suggest aerodynamic principles or have complex mechanics, their function was purely philosophical – to transmit the artist's experiences in a manner that challenges preconceptions and creates an emotional response in the viewer.
According to his formal biography, Giles Gilson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1942, in the front seat of a 1933 Ford. Gilson's father was a tool and die maker who did auto repair and body work on the side for extra money. He was also a pilot who had grown up on a farm, learning how to repair and, if need be, build the things he needed.
"I became interested in aircraft and automobiles because of his influence," Gilson said. "He started flying when 'aeroplanes' had only been around for a few years and the headlights on his Stutz were lit by kerosene."
Gilson became involved in industrial design and engineering at an early age, and they remain major influences on his artwork.
Gilson's father preferred practicality over fashion and knowledge over certification, in the interest of what worked best.
"I think I may have some of that from him," Gilson said in regard to his lack of concern with accepted notions and appropriate practices. In fact, if there has been one aspect of Gilson's work that stood out over the years, it had been his penchant for breaking rules and challenging the status quo.
Having gained prominence as a woodturner, Gilson rejected the limitations of conformity and began painting over the wood, shocking many in the field. Initially scolded by collectors and dropped by galleries, he is today considered the greatest influence on the painterly explorations of a number of leading wood artists.

This artist is featured in the book, The Cutting Edge:
Contemporary Wood Art and The Lipton Collection
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