Erik Gamble
(1950–)
(–2007)
Erik Gamble
1950–2007
Erik John Darryl Gamble (1950–2007) was a Canadian artist born in Toronto, Ontario, known for his painting, mixed-media artwork, serigraphs, and woodblock printmaking. Gamble utilized various mediums, such as oils, acrylics, watercolors, pastels, and graphite. A rebellious individual who refused to conform to systems or conventions, Erik left Jarvis Collegiate to enroll in a specialized art program at Central Tech, followed by a series of courses at Toronto's New School of Art. Erik was a member of a band called Moonfood; he is said to have carved out his identity as a musician and a painter from an early age.
Already by his mid-20s Gamble earned recognition by exhibiting at the David Mirvish Gallery alongside prominent American and Canadian abstract artists. He participated in exhibitions throughout Canada and the United States, and his work found a place in numerous art collections.
Gamble has dedicated himself to painting, and throughout his large-scale abstract paintings displayed vibrant colors, intricate textures, and a distinctive blend of organic and rectangular forms. While he became renowned for his pure abstractions, which focused on color, shape, line, and texture, he also ventured into landscape and figurative subjects.
