Linda Gilbert
Abstract artist working with felt but unseen energies from the land, places and people.
Message
Linda Gilbert (b. 1960s, Grey Lynn, Aotearoa, New Zealand) is an abstract painter based in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Gilbert’s background, education and relentless curiosity informs her distinctive practice, which gives form to intuitive responses to scientific phenomena. She holds a Bachelor of Laws, a Bachelor of Visual Arts, and a Master of Fine Art (Hons). Her work navigates complex ideas relating to energy, gravity, and magnetism, translating them into delicate, layered compositions across various media, including acrylic on canvas, plywood, mixed media on mineral paper, and cyanotype photography.
In addition to her visual arts career, Gilbert leverages her legal and creative skills as a policy advisor and graphic recorder, fostering positive change around human rights issues within communities. She advocates for and writes about the impact that the arts have on wellbeing. In 2025, she was elected to the Board of the International Visual Literacy Association.
Gilbert has been a finalist in several national awards. She exhibits regularly, and her work is held in private collections in New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The Art Precinct represent her.
Statement
My art explores the unseen forces that permeate our world—magnetism, gravity, ocean currents, and the subtle energies found in the landscape, buildings and between people. I am fascinated by the intersection of intuition and scientific theory, and I use my practice to give these invisible dynamics form.
I begin with an intuitive response to spaces, places and people. These feelings and heightened perceptions are investigated using techniques borrowed from Surrealist and Visionary artists in an attempt to let the subconscious lead the process. I work in delicate layers of colour and texture, creating depth and movement that speaks to the constant flow and shift of energy. I use diverse media, including acrylics, inks, and photography, to capture the ephemeral nature of these forces.
Through my work, I aim to create a space for contemplation, inviting viewers to pause and consider the energetic undercurrents that shape our reality and our connection with the earth that sustains us. My art is a dialogue between my internal landscape and the external world.