Julie Gifford has been a painter and life long art enthusiast for as long as she can remember! She studied in a range of academics prior to receiving her BFA from Denison University in Granville, Ohio. She attended Instituto Allende in San Miguel de Allende in Guanajuato, Mexico where she studied metal work and print making, Following Mexico, Julie studied at The Center for Creative Studies in Detroit and Rhode Island School of Design.
In her 15 years of living on-island with her husband & kids, she studied with celebrated artists such as Sherre Wilson Lillegren, Robert McKee, Ken Layman, John Lochtefeld, and on…
Her work is now being collected internationally and can be seen in the beautiful surroundings at Nantucket Looms, the Artists Association of Nantucket as well as Alpers Gallery in Rockport, Cape Ann and on-line at greylady.com.
The continual process of painting and editing of her work has always been inspired by the towns of both coasts. While living in Nantucket she helped to develop Nantucket Workshops with partner, Anne Sutherland. Since then, Julie has continued to host private classes and workshops from Los Alamos, California to Cotuit, Massachusetts where she now resides.
My ideas are inspired by the natural world and simple structures of daily life. Through painting, I want to explore the serenity of coastal waters and the gardens that surround me. My original idea at the start of each painting, invariably evolves as it progresses. I find it exciting to push and edit; create changes and incorporate something unexpected. Hopefully this keeps the imagery fresh and inspiring for the viewer as well.