Terry Gilecki is a Canadian painter and commercial artist born in 1954.
Terry Gilecki at a glance
- Nationality: Canadian
- Known for: Koi fish paintings
- Medium: Acrylic paint on textured surfaces
- Techniques: Airbrush, brush and scratching back
- Career: Working as a commercial and fine artist since the 1970s
- Represented by: White Rock Gallery
“Then there is the subject that one day speaks to you alone, in a language that seems was made just for you to understand just enough, to make you want to learn more. A subject that seems to fit all your expressive wants and needs. That is how it felt when I first laid my eyes and opened my mind to layers of beauty, the peace and serenity and the vast artistic potential of the koi pond.”
Terry Gilecki has been involved professionally as a freelance commercial and fine artist since 1973, confronting the challenge of working many mediums and innovating methods and techniques to fit specific demands, and many of those challenges are reflected in the processes and techniques now used in his paintings.
Terry Gilecki’s art is achieved by first applying reactive mediums and modelling material for the texture, often working and reworking the surface and colour glazes until the desired effect is achieved, and painting is then done in acrylic, using a combination of airbrush, brush and scratching back techniques, as well as translucent, opaque and occasionally metal powders for dimensional quality.
- He has been a professional artist since 1973.
- He uses reactive mediums and texture modelling in his work.
- He paints primarily in acrylic with airbrush and brush techniques.
- He is best known for his koi fish paintings.
- His work is represented by White Rock Gallery.
Terry Gilecki says that when he first experienced the charm of the koi fish pond, he was struck by the sense of calm and tranquility it bestowed upon him, and it was always his goal to make art that would not only come out to greet the viewer but also make a positive and lasting impression on the viewer, and he knew at that moment that this was a subject he would want to paint and explore again and again.
Art Category Fact: Mixed media painting is a technique that combines different materials and methods in a single artwork, such as acrylic, airbrush, texture mediums, and metal powders, and it allows artists like Terry Gilecki to create complex, layered surfaces that add depth and dimension, and it has been used by artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns, who pushed the boundaries of traditional painting.
“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” — Edgar Degas
If you’d like to see more of Terry Gilecki’s koi paintings, you can visit his official website, terrygilecki.com.