Sonja Keldor-Gudiksen


Artist Name: | Sonja Keldor-Gudiksen |
Main Focus: | Painting |
Usual Medium: | Acrylic |
State: | Queensland |
Exhibits Art: | Yes |
Online Sales: | Yes |
Background
I started painting when I was 7 years old, until then I had been drawing a lot. My favourite uncle loved my drawings and for my birthday that year gave me an easel, canvas acrylics, and brushes, and away I went.
I wanted to go to the Academy of Art (Kunst Akademiet) in Copenhagen, but my Dad convinced me that I should take another education first. So I thought I’ll become a nursing sister \ RN and then travel the world and pursue my art. I did just that: moved from Denmark to Australia with a young family!
While studying nursing I took drawing and ceramic courses with several Danish artists. Moving to Australia in 1982 (Alice Springs) I started studying art at the community college where I took a two year Diploma in Painting, Photography and Printmaking. I learned oil painting like the old masters did, by grinding my own colours, cooking rabbit skin glue to prime the canvases that I stretched on homemade stretchers. I learned to start with a BW sketch, then grey tones, then tertiary colours and finally the colours I wanted to use. Only after all those sketches did I start the painting itself.
Moving from Alice Springs to Rockhampton, I joined the Central Qld Contemporary Artists and exhibited with them for a number of years. As part of the Flying Arts School I attended several art workshops at Cooee Bay (the latest in 2012). These workshops were 10 day residential affairs run by Mervyn Moriarty and Bela Ivanye with long-time guest Jim Cobb demonstrating and field testing the latest range of acrylic paints and mediums.
When I moved to Ipswich I started a fine arts degree at the Qld College of Art (now part of Griffith), graduating with a major in painting.
I have sold my artwork both in Australia and Overseas.
Exhibitions:
I have exhibited in Cairns Regional Gallery, Sugarama at Mourilyan (FNQ), Rockhampton regional gallery with Linda Frawley and Lyn Diefenbach, with an art college friend at Giardinetto’s Italian Restaurant (Brisbane), Innisfail Regional Gallery, Alice Springs Regional Gallery, Metro Art Gallery (Brisbane), Walter Reid Centre with the Central Qld Contemporary Artists many times.