Beneath the Sakura: The Mystery of the Girl in Kimono Painting

ELVIRA GORD A rising artist in the Dubai fine art scene, Elvira Gord (aka E. Gord) has evolved into an amazing talent, demonstrating that her artistic creativity warrants a notable position in this growing, important, international art center. She offers a fresh perspective with her colorful paintings depicting architecture, still-life and nature. Originally from Eastern Europe, Elvira self-describes as a citizen of the world, as her travels have taken her to many places before she, her husband and two children, settled in Dubai. The inspiration for her art is informed by their extensive travels to Asia, New York, Scandinavia and Europe. Wherever she goes she is inspired by the light, color and atmosphere of the location, which she then transfers onto strong, vivid canvases. Elvira has had a natural affinity for art her whole life; however this was not actually her first profession. Originally a successful Financial Executive, Elvira decided to take her art more seriously and turned this lifelong passion into a full-time endeavor. Having originally studied a more classical style of painting in the atelier of a high-profile artist, where she once lived, Elvira blossomed as an artist and subsequently developed her own unique style. Influenced by the art of Monet, during visits to Paris and New York, she has reinterpreted the impressionist style by combining a more expressionistic and colorful application. For Elvira, primarily using the mediums of oils, or acrylics to reveal the interplay of color, light, form and movement, has been her way to express the world around her. She prefers strong, evocative colors, somewhat stronger than the Impressionist painters. Though her subject matter tends to be either elements of nature, or architectural structures, she paints from feelings - not the object itself. Her floral paintings are not just representational, but address color, shape, value and a sense of space. She recreates a single flower, such as seen in her oils of bright yellow sunflowers, with confidant, lavish, expressive brush strokes - rich with color, revealing great depth and intensity. She often applies the oils with a palette knife, providing a more, impasto/3-D effect to the image. She loves buildings, which can be seen in her architectural canvases of places she has visited in her travels.