Native to Corpus Christi, Texas, Gilbert's been producing art his entire life. Throughout elementary school, middle school and high school, art played a major role in shaping who he is today. After graduating high school with Art Honors, Gilbert earned his degree in Graphic Design from the Art Institute of Houston in 1999. 

 

Today, Gilbert's passion for art is expressed through graphic design, bonsai, music and especially his paintings and drawings. Gilbert currently resides in his hometown of Corpus Christi where he owns and operates his personalized graphic design business ... Can2 Creative Company. 

 

The Work

 

The earthly subjects of Gilbert Cantu’s work have a strong orbital pull, centering the swirl of varied mediums and inspirations with unifying force. The world that takes form, forged through graphite, acrylic and board, arranges digitally enhanced images, pages from hundred-year-old books and other found objects around an organic inspiration – perhaps a flower or an animal... something alive.

 

Gilbert’s mixed media approach allows his work to take on a sense of liveliness and play as his subjects color their own meaning onto a background of rich textures and spontaneous strokes of ink, pencil and acrylic. His work serves as an expression of complex emotional states becoming more intense, spirited and unsuspecting as the artist moves each piece closer to realization. His adventurous process, along with his penchant for the bold use of texture associated with his Mexican heritage, make Gilbert’s work imaginative and provocative as his central subject speaks eloquently on behalf of troves of emotions, memories and musings.