Bio:
David Noah Giles was born and raised in New York City. He attended public schools and grew up in the borough of Queens. His mother was a painter and inspired him to be an artist. He has been painting and drawing as long as he can remember. He majored in painting in the BFA program of the State University at New Paltz New York. There he painted under Professor Joop Sanders ,a protégé of Wilem de Kooning. He also studied painting and drawing with Professor Alex Minewski, who had studied with Hans Hoffman and Nicolaides (author or the Natural Way to Draw) Then to broaden his horizons he traveled by bus from New York to Mexico City, Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende. His purpose was to see the murals of Jose Clement Orozco From there he went to San Francisco and continued his art studies at the California College of Art in Oakland. He was awed by the spectacular natural beauty of the state and decided to make it his home. Living in the Bay Area with its’ eclectic culture and history of visual arts and music has had a permanent influence on him. He further developed his painting and art history knowledge making use of its’ great book stores and libraries. His friends were poets, artists and musicians they would often meet at Caffé Trieste,in North Beach, one of the original espresso cafes on the West Coast. David always had his large sketchbook and pens with him where ever he went in the city. In 1981 his work evolved from a mainly figurative expressionist approach to to a primarily abstract one. After nearly 20 years in SF he made his way to the Great Pacific Northwest in the early 1990’s, he settled in Seattle and set up a studio.
He has maintained a continuous devotion to painting and art history and believes in the importance of the artist’s contributtion to culture and the philosophy of the worlds’ society. David views the artist as a citizen of the world. He teaches art classes and has shown work in many venues over the past 25 years. His work is in public and private collections He lives in Tumwater, Washington with his wife who is also an artist.
Artist Statement:
I decided to dedicate my life to painting while visiting the Caves of Altamira in Spain when I was 15 years old. I marveled at the sophistication of the so called primitive prehistoric artists. I grew up amidst the sights and sounds of New York City, the loud rhythmic symphony of the NYC Subway. Surrounded by diverse cultures, food and religions. The excitement of Jazz ,Rock and Latin music. I carried these influences within me to the West Coast of America in 1974.Here I acclimatized to more natural and peaceful environment. I believe the culture of the present and the future derives from the wealth of the worlds civilizations. During my initial years as an artist I was inspired by the Paintings of Delacroix, the Impressionists , the Post Impressionists (Van Gogh, Cezanne, Gauguin) and the German Expressionists. I thought that in order to paint a humanistic work one must depict the human form and the recognizable world.
Encounters in the 1980’s with the work and philosophy of Kandinsky, moved to the next stage of my art producing non-objective abstract works executed in acrylic paint and mediums. My art has evolved to a freer yet more deliberate process. I continued to explore new frontiers utilizing my internal compass that is calibrated by my past breakthroughs and successes. I have developed my own lexicon of calligraphy, broken geometric forms, spatial relationships, line and color. During the past several years I have added Patterned and carved collage to my repertoire. My methodology continues to grow with additional elements from an infinity of possibilities. I aspire to continue to produce works of Power, Subtlety, and Beauty.