Alfred Gockel Paints Live At Baterbys Art Gallery Spring Auction in Orlando, Florida

March 14, 2012 - PRLog -- Back in the early 2000’s, Michael Jordan found himself walking into an international art expo somewhere in bustling New York city to view the show and possibly collect some art himself. After circling the exhibit grounds and seeing a myriad of artworks by hundreds of artists from around the world, he stopped in his tracks and was instantly locked into the work of this one German artist.

The artist’s works were colorfully bold, visually compelling and oozing with energy. The large canvases grabbed Michael’s attention away from the other art in the large hall that instantly became mundane compared to this particular artist’s. After a few minutes of studying the artworks, Michael Jordan was issuing a money order to purchase the artist’s entire collection for the show. The artist was Alfred Gockel and this was one of his first exhibits in America in which he won “Best of Show”.

German-born and raised in the coal mining community of Ludinghausen, Alfred started working in the coal mines and was focused on becoming an engineer with the simple objective of finding a suitable and stable profession. “We did not have a lot of money when I was growing up,” Gockel says. “My parents would take me to the zoo and I would sit down and paint for hours. They really inspired me to be an artist.”

Though he planned to become an engineer when he was in his early teens, Alfred’s enthusiasm and fondness for painting occupied the larger part of who he was back when he was much younger. Unfortunately, though both of his parents were creative, his father being a designer and his mother a crafts maker, their status in life was initially a major hindrance in his desire to pursue an artist’s life.

Alfred decided to earn a degree in typography and graphic design at Polytechnic in Munster, where he graduated in 1977. After which, he worked in the advertising industry for many years. He was fascinated early on by the magic created gracefully by color on paper and thus desired to view the world only through that medium.

In 1980, He made the decision to dedicate himself full-time to painting. He developed a unique, signature style that is still known today. The recognizable strong primary colors strike through the canvas, creating layers and planes of different textures and angles. All of which seem to create a vast montage of different worlds outside ours. The images Alfred superimposes on these are abstract in form, but carry with them references to music, love, nature and just about anything under the sun.

In fact, Alfred has made a name for himself painting live in front of an audience in an art gallery or a high-end cruise ship. In his charming, yet firm tone, he would ask the people in the crowd to name the first thing that came to their minds. After hearing 8 to 10 people spew out their answers (from palm trees and dolphins to pastry chefs and robots), he would then paint all of these images in a large canvas that cohesively weaves all these sporadic elements in one unified story.

Such an experience reveals the artist’s skill and talent as much as his virtuosity in seeing harmony amidst chaos. When he administers all of these into a canvas, the viewer is left awed and motionless. His work ranges from unique screen print etchings to serigraphy. In the last ten years, over 2 million of his images have been sold in the U.S. alone.

On March 24, 2012, witness Alfred perform the same feat as he paints live for the audience at Baterbys Art Gallery in Orlando, Florida (9101 International Drive, Ste 1008, Orlando, FL). Attend the event and inscribe your thoughts on Alfred’s canvas and therefore, onto the timeless work of a master artist. The live painting demonstration will take as part of Baterbys Art Gallery’s Spring Auction. Preview begins at 4pm so guests will be treated to Alfred’s energized live painting as well as hors d’oeuvres and cocktails from Cuba Libre Rum Bar and Restaurant. RSVP at http://www.baterbys.com to claim a free art print when you register at the door on March 24.              

Baterbys Art Gallery was voted by Orlando Magazine and Orlando Style Magazine readers as Orlando’s Best Art Gallery. They earned the title not only for the glorious 6,000 sq. ft. space brimming with world-class artworks like Alfred Gockel’s, but also because each experience they provide their guests at the gallery is stamped with their passion for art.

At the Live Painting and Spring Auction event on March 24, each guest will not only receive free art prints, but also raffle tickets for a handful of special prizes like framed artworks, gift certificates and fun items. They are also offering a “BUY ONE, TAKE ONE DEAL” wherein for one art purchase made during the auction, the guest will receive a FREE ARTWORK by Alfred Gockel. Guests will only cover the framing cost as it is custom-tailored by the gallery’s framing department. Nonetheless, that’s an extraordinary value of at least $300, FREE!

For more information or to RSVP, visit http://www.baterbys.com. Baterbys has been in the art industry for over 25 years. The company’s expertise in art is unparalleled and in turn, they offer their clients something unique in the industry: a lifetime money-back guarantee of authenticity for each work of art it sells, and a lifetime exchange policy for each work of art it sells. This is important to art collectors, since provenance is everything.

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