Gin Flynn

BIO

I was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island.  My parents had envisioned a future in business for me but my heart envisioned a future in art.  My earliest memory of falling in love with the stark beauty of black and white originated with the attire of my early education teachers: nuns.  Their voluminous black and white habit was a stunning visual, especially as they moved down the aisle, veil and skirts swishing as they passed my desk.  Black and white, its sheer beauty and contrast, was imprinted on my artistic soul.

Over the years I have studied art in different forms and mediums at various institutions across the country.  Always I would come back to printmaking and linocuts.  Again, black and white seduced me and I eventually turned to cutting in black paper to produce the graphic images that speak so clearly to me. My studio is based in Portland, Oregon.

Some of my accomplishments include illustrations for Oregon Home Magazine, Willamette Week; literary magazines, cd cover art, brochures and corporate identity signage.  My work has been shown at Maryhill Museum, L&B Gallery, Oswego Lake Gallery, the American Institute of Architects Gallery, Columbia Art Gallery and 23Sandy Gallery.  In addition, I was commissioned to create public artwork consisting of four large metal panels depicting the Pearl District, fabricated and installed in 2009.

View the OPB Artbeat Video Feature:

http://www.opb.org/television/programs/artbeat/segment/virginia-flynn-paper-cutting/

CONTACT: 

GINFLYNN@GMAIL.COM

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am a visual artist and my medium is paper.

I love the physical process of cutting into paper with a knife, releasing stark, graphic, positive and negative images as a result. There is something very appealing about the immediacy of this medium. Also I enjoy the challenge of keeping the entire image intact within the Frame of the paper without the whole piece falling apart. 

My interest in cutting paper evolved from a background in Linocut and Wood Block Printmaking. In my studio, without a press and yearning for the satisfaction that comes with creating images that are seductive in their crisp black and white beauty, I turned to two basic materials: black paper and a knife.

The art of paper cutting has opened up a field of unlimited exploration. I enjoy working with architects and design and construction professionals. The images I create are strong, evocative and thought provoking. They are especially lovely when they are casting soft shadows on a background. I can easily envision my work being translated into permanent media, such as screens, glass, gates, fences, metal. I would welcome the opportunity to consider designing architectural applications.