Between Midnight and Dawn/SOLD- Private Collectors, Palm Desert, CA Painting

Born in New Orleans, and raised in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, Gina developed a passion for art at a very young age, and credits her artistic abilities to the environment in which she grew up. Her mother is a concert pianist and recording artist, father a noted LA architect and photographer, and cousin, a prominent northwest contemporary artist. Her childhood was immersed in an exchange of art and music, as creativity always took center stage. Accepted for direct admission to the University of Southern California Roski School of Fine Arts at barely 17, she enrolled in the graphic arts curriculum, setting her sights on becoming a fashion illustrator. Fiercely independent, she left the university 2 years into the program, to travel to Europe, where she continued to refine her artistic technique, receiving formal training in figurative drawing and painting in Paris, and Florence, Italy. Upon returning to Los Angeles, she completed her BFA; however, European culture had left a profound influence on her style as a commercial artist. Her avant-garde illustrations were soon sought after by such clients such as Liz Claiborne, Etienne Eigner, Alexander McQueen, CBS and MGM studios, and A&M/Polygram records among others. Gina has also emerged as a highly desirable figurative painter. Her technique is both spontaneous and controlled, a delicate blending of photo-realism with evocative imagery. The urban-theme canvases are elegant and mysterious, unmistakably influenced by her travels. She can be found in her studio, amidst an eclectic arrangement of sketches and notes for future paintings, canvases in various stages of completion, and never without music. Whether it be Grunge or Chopin, she explains that each painting is directly inspired by music, an integral part of her creativity, that not only influences the final result, but allows her to give as an artist, what she terms, "the very best expression of my creative process." Gina's works have been exhibited in galleries across the west coast and the midwest, and are included in numerous celebrity and corporate collections.
www.ginahiggins.com www.opiumeyespublishing.com