Shelter Island artist Gavin Zeigler’s love for discovery drives his work. Through October, grab a drink and visit Greenport Harbor Brewing Company’s upstairs tasting room gallery in Greenport to see the discrete details that make Zeigler’s paintings so unique.
In the show Postcards from the Rock, which had its opening reception in July, you’ll find large collage-like wood panel paintings packed with colors, shocking materials and intricate designs.
Ann Vandenburgh, the brewing company’s gallerist, sorted through over 1,000 of Zeigler’s paintings to curate the perfect makeup matching the tasting room’s vibe.
“I love the primitiveness of the environment,” says Vandenburgh. “The juxtaposition of modern art in this space is always exciting and very well received.”
Zeigler, who hails from a farm just south of Nashville, Tenn., grew up building things for fun and making magic marker drawings.
Despite being intimidated by acrylic paint, Zeigler learned the ropes from his parents’ friend, acclaimed artist Bunn Gray, provoking the career path he’d ultimately take.
Thirteen and a half years later, Zeigler graduated with a bachelor’s in art history from Atlanta College of Art after deciding between taking a business route inspired by his father or choosing a more creative occupation like his mother.
In the ‘80s, a friend sent him a ticket to visit New York City, where he then offered Zeigler a spot on his couch for a month while he found his way as an artist in Manhattan.
Zeigler did just that and found a studio space where he worked for the next 20 years, eventually buying a home on the East End and splitting time between the two locations.
When he was ready to expand his studio space, he rode past a former Socony gas station-turned-body-shop on his motorcycle and knew that was just the spot.
He moved out to his Shelter Island studio where he works and lives now — after upgrading the space — and has made great art there for the last 23 years.
Zeigler works in various mediums including sculpting, photography and painting. He shoots home listings for Sotheby’s full-time and runs his own photography company on the side.
In his spare time, Zeigler makes wooden panels which are on display at the brewing company; many include different found items, like pennies, stamps, payroll checks and photographs.
He prepares these 8 inch by 12 inch panels with gesso, sanding and taping and then applies paper or other material with a bag press, applying 27 pounds of atmospheric pressure per square inch. This makes the material appear meshed to the wood, which Ziegler then paints.
Zeigler has been making these pieces since 2006 and has boxes of them stacked around his home studio.
“I just like them because I can do a lot at once as opposed to having one painting on an easel and you’re just working on that,” he says. “I’ve done as many as 50 at a time and subsequently, I might make a mistake on this one and not really like the mistake I made, but purposely apply it to the next one.”
Vandenburgh found his art through a friend and was immediately inclined to show it at the brewery. She decided on the name of the exhibit, inspired by the movie Postcards from the Edge.
See Zeigler’s art until the end of the month.
The tasting room and gallery is open Friday and Saturday 12 to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 12 to 7 p.m.
