ELLEN GAUBE
An Artist of the Natural World

Art is my creative center.
The spirit which drives and sustains me.
     an experience, an impression.
     diversity, growth patterns and repetitive elements
     the coexistence of order and chaos.
     imperfect beauty.

Biography
Gaube was born in 1953 and is a life long resident of 
the northeastern United States. Always an artist, she 
developed her love of plants in her grandmother’s 
gardens and also pursued her scientific side by 
fossil hunting in a nearby creek bed. 
Her first profession was pharmacy followed later by 
a BFA in Painting from Lyme Academy College of Fine 
Arts.

Artist Statement
Having grown up with early exposure to liturgical
manuscript painting and the art of stained glass,
it was a natural progression for me to be drawn
to the art of the ancient world, art, Japanese art,
botanical art and Art Nouveau, among others.
My work is influenced by a large and diverse group
of artists.
A love of all things found in nature is the focus
of most of my work with pencil and paper as tools
of choice. I continue to be fascinated by the complex
curves and shapes found in branches, vines, stems 
and leaves and labor to present them realistically and 
with great sensitivity. Minimalism is at the core of my 
drawings, presenting only that which is necessary to 
reveal what is hidden, humble and ordinary.
I've completed a series of large drawings of Oriental 
bittersweet, an invasive species, and I'm continuing
with the next series of random twigs and branches 
contrasted with flat, geometric elements.
Photography has become an extension of my studies 
of trees, plants and flowers. During my hikes through 
nearby conservation land I seek out interesting textures, 
forms and colors. With digital manipulation I can produce
abstraction which is far removed from the original images 
and which becomes  unpredictable and striking. 
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