Gwenn Seemel’s Second Face 2009
I am Gwenn Liberty Seemel. My father wanted to name me Liberty Bell Seemel—after the great Philadelphian e-flat chimer—but made the compromise when my mother pointed out that that particular ding-dong is, in fact, cracked.
I was raised part-time in San Francisco and part-time in a small village in France. In Brittany, I attended the same grammar school my mother did growing up, and I learned to play a mean game of boule bretonne for an eight year old.
Eventually, my family settled in the United States, in Oregon, and, these past few years, I have stayed on. I graduated summa cum laude from Willamette University in 2003, and I now live in Portland with my sweetheart.
I am a full-time artist and have been for eight years now. My work comes in two varieties: the individual portrait and the portrait in a series. I paint likenesses of individuals for commission, and I also paint portraits of groups of people for the purpose of exploring a particular issue. I exhibit the latter in conceptual shows. Apple Pie is one such series created entirely in allegorical portraiture, and it addresses what it means to be an American. Recently, I toured Subjective, another one of my series, throughout the Pacific Northwest. A collaboration with Becca Bernstein, the series is also a book with an introduction written by the portraiture scholar Dr. Richard Brilliant.
I keep a blog that is sometimes in French and often in English—more and more the articles and videos are presented bilingually. It’s a lot of writing and process images with a good amount of photos and videos too. I focus on my own art practice, the business of art, being an artist for free culture, and the difficulties of living with endometriosis.
Please email me at gwenn@gwennseemel.com if you would like to be added to my mailing list for notices about upcoming shows and events.
-—SPEAKING—-
I love speaking about my work—everything from portraiture’s embattled status in the fine arts community to the practicalities of being a working artist. If you are interested in having me workshop with your community, please email me.
“Gwenn has those magic ingredients that allow an artist to be a good speaker as well. She is prolific, responsive and, above all, willing to share her experiences fully. Gwenn’s approachable character and youthful philosophy about art is refreshing and inspiring.”
“Gwenn...spoke with honesty, clarity, and encouragement to all students who enjoy art.”
“When I told my portrait photography class that I had asked a local painter to come and speak to them about her process, they were a little unsure how it would be relevant. As it turned out, Gwenn...had lots of practical advice to offer. I would recommend Gwenn as valuable resource to anyone involved in art education.”
-—RÉSUMÉ—-
Born 1981, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
2011 - Subjective, Art Festival Museum, Edmonds, Washington -- in collaboration with Becca Bernstein.
2010 - Subjective, Pence Gallery, Bend, Oregon -- in collaboration with Becca Bernstein.
2010 - Subjective, Arts Center, Corvallis, Oregon -- in collaboration with Becca Bernstein.
2010 - Subjective, North View Gallery, Portland, Oregon -- in collaboration with Becca Bernstein.
2009 - Apple Pie, Downtown Initiative for the Visual Arts, Eugene, Oregon.
2008 - Apple Pie, Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - Sympathetic Magic, Filter Talent, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - Swollen, Littman Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2006 - Mutually Beneficial, Concrete, Portland, Oregon.
2005 - Public Faces, City Club of Portland, Portland, Oregon.
2005 - Private Masks, Starling Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2004 - Snow Days, Northwest Sony Only, Portland, Oregon.
2004 - Trickster Project, Backdoor Theater, Portland, Oregon.
2003 - Critics Critiqued, Visage, Portland, Oregon.
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS:
2011 - A Somewhat Secret Place, PRESENTspace, Portland, Oregon.
2010 - Spread Ego with TJ Norris, Place, Portland, Oregon.
2010 - Resonance, Anka Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2010 - Transcendent, Anka Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2010 - Views And Reviews, Art Building Gallery, Willamette University, Salem, Oregon.
2009 - Mixed, Ray Warren Multicultural Symposium, Lewis and Clark College, Portland, Oregon.
2009 - Art & Labor & The Labor Of Art, Olympic Mills, Portland, Oregon -- featured artist.
2008 - A Brief History, Littman Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2008 - Keep Portland Weird, City Hall, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - PDX Panels, Portland Art Center, Portland, Oregon.
2006 - inCLOVER, Mount Scott Park, Portland, Oregon.
2006 - Boredom: I Learned It By Watching You, Portland Art Center, Portland, Oregon.
2003 - Recent Graduate Show, Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
2003 - Senior Art Show, Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Salem, Oregon.
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS:
2010 - Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Salem, Oregon.
2003 - Willamette University, Salem, Oregon.
PUBLICATIONS:
2010 - Subjective, exhibition catalog with introduction by Richard Brilliant.
2010 - 2010 OPB Calendar, Oregon Public Broadcasting.
2008 - Apple Pie, exhibition catalog with introduction by Inara Verzemnieks.
SOME REVIEWS AND INTERVIEWS:
2011 - “Thinking Inside the Box,” Oregon Quarterly, Jim McChesney.
2011 - “News and Notes,” Oregon ArtsWatch, Barry Johnson.
2011 - “Masterclass Interview with Gwenn Seemel,” The Abundant Artist, Cory Huff.
2010 - “HOWTO Make Art Without Getting ‘Ripped Off’ Online,” BoingBoing, Cory Doctorow.
2010 - “Riverside-Brookfield Art Students Learn from an Expert,” Lyons Suburban Life, Mark Busch.
2010 - “BlogHer Voice of the Week: Gwenn Liberty Seemel on Small Strokes,” BlogHer, Elisa Camahort.
2010 - “Paint by Numbers,” The Portland Business Journal, Matthew Kish.
2010 - “1 Project, 2 Artists, 10 Subjects Make a World of Difference,” The Oregonian, Margie Boulé.
2009 - “Interview: Gwenn Seemel,” Sweet Station, Welshie.
2009 - “Art Swap,” The Hillsboro Argus, JoAnn Boatwright.
2009 - “DK’s Hot Sheet,” The Oregonian, DK Row.
2009 - “Art for Politic’s Sake,” The Oregonian, editorial board.
2009 - “Leonard Portrait is Flattering, All Right,” Oregon Live, Mary Kitch.
2007 - “Faces from the Edge of the Earth,” The Oregonian, Inara Verzemnieks.
2007 - “Before and After,” Just Out, Jim Radosta.
2007 - “Swollen,” PDX Magazine, Vanessa Nix.
2006 - “In the Market for Some Portraits,” The Oregonian, DK Row.
2006 - “You Scratch her Back and She’ll Paint Yours,” Portland Tribune, Eric Bartels.
2005 - “Government and Death,” The Oregonian, Harvest Henderson.
TELEVISION AND RADIO:
2010 - “10 O’Clock News,” for the Kirk Reeves art auction, KPTV Channel 12 Portland, Sophie Soong.
2010 - “Oregon Art Beat,” Oregon Public Broadcasting, KC Cowan.
2008 - “EZone,” PDX49, Chloe Houser and Darcy Zettler.
2004 - “10 O’Clock News,” for Snow Days, KPTV Channel 12 Portland, Shauna Parsons.
2003 - “Artstar Radio,” KPSU, Eva Lake.
SOME LECTURES AND WORKSHOPS:
2011 - Lecture, guest artist, Willamette University visual rhetoric class, Salem, Oregon.
2011 - Workshop, drawing with markers, Oregon Art Education Association Conference, Eugene, Oregon.
2010 - Workshop, self-portraits, Riverside Brookfield High School, Riverside, Illinois.
2009 - Lecture, guest artist, Oregon Society of Artists, Portland, Oregon.
2009 - Pecha Kucha Night, Eugene, Oregon.
2009 - Lecture, how to make a living as an artist, Umpqua Bank, Portland, Oregon.
2009 - Workshop, self-portraits, Madison High School, Portland, Oregon.
2008 - Storyteller, Super Project Lab, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - Lecture, how to make a living as an artist, Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - Workshop, self-portraits, Madison High School, Portland, Oregon.
2007 - Lecture, emotional portraiture, Newspace Center for Photography, Portland, Oregon.
2006 - Lecture, guest artist, Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon.
AWARDS:
2012 - Project Grant, Regional Arts and Culture Council, Portland, Oregon.
2011 - Featured Blogger, BlogHer Money.
2011 - Kickstarter, crowd-sourced funding for creatives.
2010 - Emergency Relief Grant, Haven Foundation, Brewer, Maine.
2009 - Emergency Relief Grant, Change Inc, Captiva, Florida.
2009 - Emergency Relief Grant, Artists’ Fellowship Inc, New York, New York.
2009 - Project Grant, Celebration Foundation, Portland, Oregon.
2009 - Career Opportunity Grant, Oregon Arts Commission, Salem, Oregon.
2008 - Project Grant, Regional Arts and Culture Council, Portland, Oregon.
2003 - Member of Phi Beta Kappa.
EDUCATION:
2003 - BA in Studio Art and French, summa cum laude, Willamette University, Salem, Oregon.
2002 - Magenia, Ella Jaroszewicz’s school for mime and dance, Paris, France.
