Friday's Child, Lmt. Edition Print, 89/150, L. Gibbs, 10 x 13", Unframed

Len Gibbs 1929 -2010 Len was a self-taught Canadian artist. Working mostly in acrylic paints he was well known for his super-realism style and was considered one of the most important artists of his generation. Born in Cranbrook, BC., he later lived in Brandon, Calgary and Edmonton and finally settled in Victoria, BC. He was always adventurous and earned his pilot’s license when he was only 16. As soon as he graduated from high school he joined the navy and served on several ships including the Royal Navy submarine HMS Tallyho. After leaving the navy he went into advertising and was the creative director for a major advertising agency in Edmonton, Alberta. He left the business world in 1968 to devote his time to painting. In November 1968, Len Gibbs had his first solo exhibition at the Alex Fraser Gallery in Vancouver that sold out on the first day. He later moved to Victoria, BC with his family where he spent the rest of his life. He had sell-out shows in Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Seattle and London, England. Edmonton art collectors waited in long line-ups at all of his exhibitions and in particular, a crowd of 200 lined-up at the West End Gallery in 1981. Len was a master of painting in acrylic medium. He also created watercolour paintings and dry brush on paper as well as drawings. He had an ability paint fine art with impeccable detail and was known for his paintings of children, cowboys and marine subjects.