Audrey E. Gabrielson On Sale

Audrey E. Gabrielson was an artist, poetess and sculptor who lived in San Francisco. She was born in Canada in 1932 and drew, colored, modeled in clay when very young. Gabrielson studied at Reed College, Portland, studying with famous West Coast artist, Louis Bunce. After retiring from a career as a Secretary for the San Francisco Superior Court, she dedicated herself to her art, focusing on oils, acrylics, watercolors and photography. In San Francisco, Gabrielson painted with artists Cucaro, Alexander E. Anderson and Raymond Howell. Initially, she worked in bronze, studying under San Francisco sculptor C.B. Johnson. Gabrielson's art was influenced and inspired by German Expressionists, Van Gogh, Lautrec, Picasso, Klimt, Schiele, Tamayo, Conners, Park and many more. Gabrielson had a passion for gems and minerals and was very involved with the San Francisco Gem and Mineral Society. She held season tickets for the San Francisco Ballet and Opera for many decades, in addition to regularly attending local and independent artist’s exhibitions and installations, touring bands and musicians, and other performances in and around San Francisco. Gabrielson passed away at her home in San Francisco's Bernal Heights neighborhood.

Gabrielson exhibited at Alberta Art, Red Deer and Uglies, Lacombe. Her art was collected by national and international collectors such as authors C.Y. Lee (“Flower Drum Song”), Alfred Coppel (“34 East”); musical promoter, Ilka Pardinas, FLY, Los Angeles.

(Biography provided by Robert Azensky Fine Art)

Figurative art, as opposed to abstract art, retains features from the observable world in its representational depictions of subject matter. Most commonly, figurative paintings reference and explore the human body, but they can also include landscapes, architecture, plants and animals — all portrayed with realism.

While the oldest figurative art dates back tens of thousands of years to cave wall paintings, figurative works made from observation became especially prominent in the early Renaissance. Artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance masters created naturalistic representations of their subjects.

Pablo Picasso is lauded for laying the foundation for modern figurative art in the 1920s. Although abstracted, this work held a strong connection to representing people and other subjects. Other famous figurative artists include Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud. Figurative art in the 20th century would span such diverse genres as Expressionism, Pop art and Surrealism.

Today, a number of figural artists — such as Sedrick Huckaby, Daisy Patton and Eileen Cooper — are making art that uses the human body as its subject.

Because figurative art represents subjects from the real world, natural colors are common in these paintings. A piece of figurative art can be an exciting starting point for setting a tone and creating a color palette in a room.

Browse an extensive collection of figurative paintings on 1stDibs.