David Gonzales' Exhibition, December 2014 December 10 2014, 0 Comments

Art on a Whim Hosts Action Painter David V. Gonzales

Movement, energy and speed are intrinsic to skiing and snowboarding. The sports embody the spirit of interacting with nature. Combine their speed with big, pristine mountains and you will find an unrivaled sense of freedom and joy. David V. Gonzales seeks to capture all of the above in his lively acrylic paintings of skiers and snowboarders.

Gonzales exploded onto the Breckenridge art scene this summer upon being selected to represent the town with the Stage 5 Pro Cycling Challenge Poster. He is known for painting motion and transferring the speed of sports into two-dimensional scenes that make viewers feel as if they are witnessing athletic feats as they are happening. The Manitou Springs-based artist has fallen in love with Breckenridge over the past several months, having witnessed the excitement of the Pro Cycling Challenge and the opening of the 2014-2015 ski season. As a result, he strives to emulate the town's character and liveliness in all of his recent works. 

When asked about his current show at the Art on a Whim gallery, Gonzales said, "Breckenridge! Skiing and snowboarding are one of the main components of the town's culture. The slopes are an inherent part of the spirit of the town. Watching people excitedly carry their skis and boards all around downtown is very cool. You don't have to travel far out of downtown to get on the mountain. This show brings it all together; the fact that there is skiing outside the gallery door, the enthusiasm throughout town and paintings that represent both inside the gallery. Seeing all the excitement, the movement and colors throughout Breckenridge make me want to capture that feeling in my work."

Gonzales loves to paint the motion of skiing and snowboarding. He thrives on portraying the essence of speed and motion in the sports through color, strong brush strokes and unique compositions. On his creative process, he says, "I start a painting with just a few colors and start to see the interaction of movement, color and form. My first few marks are just to capture the motion of the skier or rider and I build upon that. I don't stay in one spot when working on the piece. I move around the painting much as a skier would on a mountain. There are often surprises stemming from not knowing exactly where you are going. It is necessary to keep that enthusiastic element, that life force, alive throughout the painting. Much like skiing, I want to keep that surprise element present throughout the entire painting. Sometimes you have more hurdles to overcome in doing so but it is that unexpected trust within yourself that you can elevate your motions to the next stage to accomplish something extraordinary."

Speaking of unexpected trust, much of Gonzales' work depicts skiers or snowboarders flying through the air. He says, "Between the wind and the movement, it is exhilarating to be up in the air. You have almost an uncontrollable faith in yourself in going beyond the normal abilities of a two footed human being by launching into the air on skis or a board." Several of his paintings capture this flying feeling, with "Aerial Spin Over 8" and "With the Stars in Breck" serving as great examples. "Aerial Spin Over 8" shows Peaks 8 and 7 behind a skier performing a back flip. Gonzales finds the peaks stunning, thanks to the large saddle separating them and the way the slopes look sculpted between the trees. Of the painting he says, "It is that fun feeling being unleashed in the sky." "With the Stars in Breck" happened serendipitously according to Gonzales. "It was a spontaneous journey of color and movement. Creating the painting captured going to a place you have never been and going with whatever happens along the way. You just trust your gut and go big. I love the night sky in Breckenridge and it was fun to present the mountain at an unusual time of day for skiing."

One of Gonzales' originals is being auctioned as a donation to Team Summit. The painting, titled "Bobby Brown Crossing the Air” depicts four time X Games gold medalist and Sochi Olympics participant Bobby Brown performing a cross air trick, overlapping his skis in front of a bright blue sky. Brown is a Colorado native who grew up skiing for Team Summit, the home ski team for each of the Summit County resorts. 100% of the proceeds from the painting will be donated to Team Summit's mission of promoting character development through athletics by stressing self-reliance, persistence, dedication and achievement. Gonzales finds that their work as a ski and ride team "transcends sports and carries on into every aspect of the child's life. They are helping to build our future by raising physically and socially aware children through sports." T-shirts and posters are also available for purchase, with a portion of proceeds from the sales being donated to Team Summit as well. 

Gonzales will be in the Art on a Whim gallery in Breckenridge this Friday and Saturday evenings from 4 to 8 pm. He will be painting live in the gallery while showing the collection of his newest original works. After finishing a day on the slopes après ski is always a good time but rarely can you be transported to the feeling of being back on the mountain. The action in Gonzales' work has the ability to bring you right back to those perfect moments on the slopes.