Gordon Ellis-Brown British, b. 1959
Gordon-Ellis Brown was born and raised in a small seaside hotel on the South Coast of England. Drawing on his life by the sea, his graphic design roots and time working in California and New Mexico, Gordon’s work incorporates application of pure colour, graphic iconography, photography and found objects.
Gordon’s 'Wish You Were Here' series of photographic printworks – showing here at the Porthminster Gallery, brings a new perspective to classic seaside holiday images from the 1960s and '70s revealing the hidden and often overlooked narratives of holiday life that lie beneath the surface, while retaining the original charm and humour that characterises the great British get-away. Here Gordon’s works 'curate' and 'repurpose' found objects.
With an acute sense of colour and deep observation of subjects, Gordon strives for simplicity, creating pictorial representations in their minimalist state, the contrasting chromatic shapes and planes generating movement, rhythm and spatial tension across the canvas. Playing with geometric abstraction, often on a cinematic scale, Gordon engages the viewer on a journey where everything that is non-essential has been removed.
Born in 1959, Gordon Ellis-Brown graduated in Graphic Design and Typography. His work has been exhibited widely since 1998, including three times in the Royal Academy Summer Shows (2007, 2010, 2017). Most recently he featured in Newlyn School of Art’s Group Exhibition in Penzance, Cornwall (2017), and in ‘Ten Ten’ London Art Fair (represented by Beaux Arts London). Gordon has received awards in the field of graphic design: The International Echo Award in Graphic Design; IBM Bursary for Creativity in Graphic Design. He is also a member of the Society of Industrial Artists & Designers (MSIAD), and the Society of Typographic Designers (MSTD). In 2017 he undertook the Art Mentoring Course at Newlyn School of Art.
His work is in many private collections in the UK, Germany and Switzerland.
Gordon Ellis-Brown is based in Winchester and is being represented for the first time in Cornwall by the Porthminster Gallery.
Gordon Ellis-Brown biography
Education
2017 Newlyn School of Art Mentoring Course
Graduated in Graphic Design and Typography
Awards
International Echo Award in Graphic Design
IBM Bursary for Creativity in Graphic Design
Membership
Society of Industrial Artists & Designers (MSIAD)
Society of Typographic Designers (MSTD)
Selected Exhibitions
2017 ‘Ten Years On: Showing Off’, Porthminster Gallery, St Ives, Cornwall
2017 Newlyn School of Art Group Exhibition, Penzance, Cornwall
2017 ‘Ten Ten’ represented by Beaux Arts London, London Art Fair
2013 ‘465 Sunflowers 2’, Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London
2011 ‘Wild West’ solo show, Winchester
2010 ‘Howdy’, Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London
2010 Print Exhibition, Adam Street Club, London
2007 ‘Sundance 1’, Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London
2006 ‘Seascape’ Collection, Hamilton’s Gallery, London
2003 Summer Exhibition, Southampton City Art Gallery
1998 ‘Moments’ Photographic Exhibition, Guildhall, Portsmouth
Artist Residencies
Penzance
Private Collections
London, UK
Brighton, UK
Winchester, UK
Berlin, Germany
Geneva, Switzerland