Art by Gail Siptak

Gail Siptak, Freefall #3, 2007
oil on panel, 8 x 8 inches

Gail Siptak - Freefall #4, 2007
oil on panel, 8 x 8 inches

Gail Siptak - Roly Polies, 2007
oil on panel, 12 x 12 inches

Gail Siptak - Roly Polies, 2007
oil on panel, 12 x 12 inches

Gail Siptak - Dainty, 2007
oil on panel, 12 x 12 inches

Gail Siptak - Freefall #2, 2007
oil on panel, 12 x 12 inches

See more of Gail's work on her website at www.gailsiptak.com,
on her flickr photostream,
Or contact her at gailsiptak@earthlink.net

Statement: 2007

These new paintings, oil on panel, are a development of my thoughts on the inability to control everything, anything. While I still remain hopeful about our world and personally about my own day to day slog though an ever more complex life, I also feel like we are all floating through history.

Thinking about immigration both now and in the past, I am amazed at the courage of people to step off the edge of their known comfort (or discomfort) and into a society they may know nothing about, often saying goodbye to family and friends forever. It was true of my own ancestors who ran away from poverty to board ships and take a chance somewhere else. And it is true today.

I sometimes think of these people floating and falling towards their future with little rudder or control. They are like seedlings, trusting they will land somewhere fertile where they can flourish.

The paintings may also address the helplessness we all feel in our particular time in history. We would like to have more control and change laws or enable or disable certain parties, but we often feel hapless and as if we were blowing in the wind. The light and the air in most of the paintings remind us that all is not lost and a better day may be coming.

Born San Francisco, California, l944

Education

Studied at Foothill Jr College, Los Altos CA; San Jose State, San Jose, CA; San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA; Glassell Museum School, Houston, TX (receiving part and full time scholarships).

Fellowships and Awards

1999 Centre D’etudes D’architecture et D’urbanisme, Saintes, France
1996 Houston YWCA Outstanding Woman of the Year in the Category of the Arts
Grant: Money for Women/Barbara Deming Memorial Fund, Inc.
Yaddo Colony for the Arts, Saratoga Springs, New York
Millay Colony for the Arts, Steeple Top, New York
Texas Commission on the Arts, Houston, Texas

Solo Exhibitions

2008: Recent Paintings, Koelsch Gallery, Houston, TX
2007: Texas Collaborative Arts Press. Prints of Siptak Gouaches, printed by Kelly Moran.

2006: Recent Paintings, Koelsch Gallery, Houston, TX

2004: Unframed Gail Siptak, Koelsch Gallery, Houston, TX

2003: Recent Paintings, Cidnee Patrick Gallery, Dallas, TX

2000: Working: O’Kane Gallery, University of Houston-Downtown
Ordinary Strange: Buchanan Gallery, Galveston, Texas
Recent Paintings: Joan Grona Gallery, San Antonio, Texas

1999: Cycle: Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico
A Touch of Whimsey: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Gail Siptak: Oeuvres Sur Papier: Centre D’etudes D’architecture et D’urbanisme, Saintes, France

1998: To the Sea: Buchanan Gallery, Galveston, Texas
Into the Snarl: University of Texas Medical School Gallery, UT-Houston Health Science Center,
Houston, Texas

1997: Inside/Out: Buchanan Gallery, Galveston, Texas
Interior Space: Weekend Gallery, Houston, Texas
Popular Neurosis: Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico
Gail Siptak, Recent Gouaches: Stages Theater, Houston, Texas

1996: Gail Siptak, Recent Paintings: C. G. Jung Center, Houston, Texas
Everyday Matters: Houston Area Women’s Center, Houston, Texas

1994: Gail Siptak, Recent Paintings: Kilgore College, Kilgore, Texas

1992: Kaleidoscope: The College of the Mainland, Texas City, Texas

1991: Gail Siptak, Drawings: Lynn Goode Gallery, Houston, Texas
Gail Siptak, Paintings: C. G. Jung Center, Houston, Texas

1990: Gail Siptak, Recent Paintings: Galerie Sct. Gertrud, Copenhagen, Denmark
Rumors Confirmed: Art Museum of Southeast Texas, Beaumont, Texas
Gail Siptak, Paintings: Lynn Goode Gallery, Houston, Texas

1989: Gail Siptak, Paintings: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas Texas

1988: Gail Siptak, Recent Work: Little Egypt Gallery, Houston, Texas
Gail Siptak, Recent Work: Griffith Gallery, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, Tx
.
1986: McMurtrey Gallery, Houston, Texas
Gail Siptak, Paintings: University of Wisconsin Center, Marshfield, Wisconsin

1984: McMurtrey Gallery, Houston, Texas

Selected Group Exhibitions

2005: Lawndale Live, 25 Years, Lawndale Art Center, Curator Gus Kopriva and Wayne Gilbert, Catalog
2005: EverybodyArt, Show Us Your Feminism, University of Houston Women’s Studies, Vine
street studios.

2004: Small Pleasures, Austin College, Sherman, TX
Contemporary Feminism, Koelsch Gallery, Houston, TX
An Eclectic Gathering of Gulf Coast Artist, CyFair College, Cypress, TX

2003: Way Cool , Koelsch Gallery, Houston, TX

2002: Gallery Artists, Cidnee Patrick Gallery, Dallas, TX

2002: Body Text, Fort Hayes University, Hays, Kansas

1999: Objects of Desire. Art Scan Gallery, Houston, Texas
Three Person Show. Buchanan Gallery, Galveston, Texas
Masquerade. Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
101 Cups. Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts Faculty Show. Houston, Texas
The Aquarium Show. Galveston Arts Center, Galveston, Texas

1998: Ripples in the Water: Texas Women’s University, Denton, Texas
Up Close and Personal: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Gail Siptak, Danna Ruth Harvey, and Doug Sweet: Buchanan Gallery, Galveston, Texas
The Cup Show: Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico
Celebration: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas

1997: Intimate: Barbara Davis Gallery, Penzoil Place, Houston, Texas
Two Kings: Lesikar Gallery, Houston, Texas
Gail Siptak, David Price, Holly Patterson, and Wanda Alexander: West End Gallery, Houston, Tx
Really Red: West End Gallery, Houston, Texas
Women in Art: Youen’s Gallery, Houston, Texas

1996: Gail Siptak / Deborah Ballard: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
U.S.A. Exhibition: Yekaterinburg, Ural, Cis (Russia).
Hope and Horror from the Ashes of Yugoslavia: Bosiac Cultural Center, New York, N.Y.
Cerling Etching Studio – Work from the First Five Years: Transco Tower Gallery, Houston;
Galveston Arts Center, Galveston, Texas
Texas Art for Russia, Final Stop: Art League of Houston, Houston, Texas
1996 Critic’s Choice: Dallas Visual Arts Center, Dallas, Texas
Texas National: Stephen F. Austin University, Nacogdoches, Texas. Juror: Faith Ringgold

1995: Gesture and Symbol, Gail Siptak and Elizabeth Akamatsu: Art League of Houston, Houston, Tx
Insight into the Future: North Harris College, Houston, Texas
Texas Collects: Selections from the Barrett Collection, Dallas Visual Art Center, Dallas, Tx
Basket Case: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Texas Art for Russia: Organized by American Embassy in Moscow, the American Consulate in
Yekaterinburg, and the Art League of Houston. Curated by Frank Williams, Moscow.
Exhibition Tour: Jan-Dec l995, Traveling to Yekaterinburg, Tomsk, St. Petersburg,
Rostovondon, Nizhniy-Noveorod, and Moscow.
Tex as Art 1995: Assistance League of Houston. Juror: Marti Mayo, Director, CAM, Houston,Tx
1995 Critic’s Choice: Dallas Visual Art Center, Dallas, Texas
The Big Picture: Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico

1994: The Heights Exhibition: Lambert Hall, Houston, Texas
Cultural Influence: Karan Ruhlan Gallery, Sante Fe, New Mexico
A Show of Hands: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
The Good Earth: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Group Show: Anderson Gallery, Buffalo, New York
New Paint: Lesikar Gallery, Houston, Texas

1993: Siptak, Cogswell, Presnail: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Houston in Hope: The Faith and Charity in Hope Gallery, Hope, Idaho. Curators: Ed and
Nancy Reddin Kienholz. Catalog.
Black and White Together: Barnes Blackman Gallery and Midtown Art Center, Houston, Tx
Flower Show: West End Gallery, Houston, Texas
X-Sightings: Anderson Gallery, Buffalo, New York

1992: From Studio to Gallery: Mills Pond House Gallery, St. James, New York. Curator: Peter Joseph
Narrative Painting, Storytelling in Texas: The Bridge Center for Contemporary Art, El Paso, Tx
The Big Show: Lawndale Art and Performance Center, Houston, Texas
Our Daily Bread: Jung Center, Houston, Texas
Tempis Fugit: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas

1991: The Power of Scale: Art Museum of South Texas, Corpus Christi, Texas. Catalog.
About the Figure: Brown, Pavlovsky, Siptak. Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
The House Show: Laguna Gloria Art Museum, Austin, Texas
Images of a Vanishing Nature: Transco Tower, Houston, Texas; Virginia Museum of Natural
History, Martinville, Virginia; Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa, Canada.
Inaugural Exhibition: Lynn Goode Gallery, Houston, Texas
Angelic Enlightenment: Judy Youens Gallery, Houston, Texas

1990: 64 Beds for the Homeless: blue collar gallery, San Antonio, Texas; and Lawndale Art and
Performance Center, Houston, Texas. Catalog.
Faculty Exhibition: High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Houston, Texas
The Cross: Lynn Goode Gallery, Houston, Texas
Sacred and Profane: Judy Youens Gallery, Houston, Texas
Gallery Artists: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas

1989: Plates by Houston Painters: Judy Youens Gallery, Houston, Texas
Drawings: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Group Exhibition: Lynn Goode Gallery, Houston, Texas
Small Works: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas

1988: Classical Myth and Imagery in Contemporary Art: Queens Museum, New York. Curator:
Barbara C. Matilsky. Catalog.
Houston Area Exhibition: Blaffer Gallery, University of Houston, Houston, Texas
Off the Wall, Houston Artists in Detroit: Michigan Gallery, Detroit, Michigan
In the Garden: Transco Tower Gallery, Houston, Texas. Curator: Sally Sprout
Bettison, Siptak, Smithers-Crump: Edith Baker Gallery, Dallas, Texas
Texas Art Celebration, `88: Two Houston Center, Houston, Texas
New American Talent: Laguna Gloria Art Museum, Austin, Texas
Exhibition l988: Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, California

1987: Five State Exhibition, Ninth Biennial: Port Arthur, Texas. Juried by Graham Beal, Chief
Curator, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. First Place; Purchace Award.
The East End Show: Lawndale Art and Performance Center. Juried by Luis Jimenez

1986: Amnesty International: Diverse Works, Houston, Texas. Catalog.
Collaborators: Artists Working Together in Houston, 1969-1986: Alfred C. Glassell Jr.
School of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas. Catalog.
150 Small Works by Texas Women Artists: Dallas City Hall, Dallas, Texas

1985: Texas Visions: The Museum of Art of the American West, Houston, Texas. Catalog.
Houston Artists in Los Angeles: Gallery of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, California
Emerging Artists Series: Galveston Arts Center, Galveston, Texas
Propaganda!: Midtown Art Center, Houston, Texas. Curators: Gertrude Barnstone, Tracye Wear
Cowboys, Computers and Cadillacs: Lawndale Art and Performance Center, Houston, Texas.
Curator: Benito Huerta
Honey, I’m Home: Midtown Art Center, Houston, Texas. Curator: Reine Hauser. Catalog.

1984: The Figure: Three Views: Jenewein, Runnels, Siptak. Transco Tower Gallery, Houston, Tx
Skupin, Siptak, Sartwelle: Boulevard Gallery, Houston, Texas
Small Works: McMurtrey Gallery, Houston, Texas
Artist’s Call: Lawndale Art Annex, Houston, Texas
Five in Progress: Square One Gallery, Houston, Texas
East End Show: Lawndale Art Annex, Houston, Texas. Catalog.
Nineteenth Annual Juried Art Award Exhibition: Jewish Community Center, Houston, Tx.
Juried by Jane Livingston. Juror’s Special Award
1984 Show: Two Houston Center, Houston, Texas. Catalog.

1983: Contemporary Views of Houston: Art League of Houston, Houston, Texas
Tri-State, Florida, Louisiana, Texas: Sponsored by Women’s Caucus for Art. Houston, Texas
Selected Show: O’Kane Gallery, University of Houston, Downtown. Houston, Texas

1982: Multimedia Show: Art League of Houston, Houston, Texas
Untitled: Lawndale Art Annex, Houston, Texas
Dimension Houston `82: Texas Commerce Tower, Houston, Texas
Works in Progress: Alfred C. Glassell Jr. School of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Tx

1981: Dimension XV1: Art League of Houston, Houston, Texas
Small Works: Boulevard Gallery, Houston, Texas

1980: Man in the Altogether: Boulevard Gallery, Houston, Texas
Circus, Circus: Boulevard Gallery, Houston, Texas
Humor in Art: Boulevard Gallery, Houston, Texas

Teaching Experience

1999: Taught painting to architecture students at Centre D’Etudes D’Architecture Et D’Urbanisme,
Saintes, France. Two week workshop. One month residency.

1990 – 2002: Teach painting and drawing at the High School for Performing and Visual Arts. Houston.

1991-1995: Taught painting workshops at: Episcopal High School; Glassell School of Art; Artshare;
Guest Teacher at College of the Mainland, Texas City.

1994 - 1998 Taught painting at the Art League of Houston.

1988: Taught with Young Audiences, Texas Arts Council.

1982: Taught with Creative Alternatives After School Program.

CURATOR:
1987: Blood Ties and Other Knotty Issues: A group show of eighteen artists, two dimensional,
three dimensional, and installation pieces involved in interpersonal and social
entanglements. Diverse Works, Houston, Texas

POSTER:
1987: University of Texas Medical Center, World Food Day.

Selected Public Exhibitions

The Barrett Collection, Dallas, TX

San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, TX

Fritolay Collection, Dallas, TX

The Museum of South Texas, Corpus Christi, TX

The Museum of Southeast Texas, Beaumont, TX

Yekaterlingberg Museum, Russia