"...in the beginning"

When I was a very small child, I saw a parade down the broad street across from my apartment building where I lived. I remember watching eagerly, and saying I would like to create my own marching band.

I then gathered my friends together and with my wooden flute, a toy drum and a couple of sticks we proceeded to march in front of the old people who were sitting on park benches in front of us. I think we were totally invisible to them that day, but to me, I was creating an "alternative" to what was expected. I made a decision right then and there that the goal of an artist is to create something new, something that people would have to think about. The "professional band" that practiced for months with their shiny uniforms signaled to me that that was what was expected.

The goal of the living is to do what is unpredictable. I wanted to be a piece of energy matter that caused a difference.

My mother enrolled me in art school at a very early age. At seven I painted my first picture, and was proud of it. I knew I was on a mission. I knew that talent was about observing. It's bizarre to think back to this time as it is so clear in my mind: "the pasts goals fusing with today's desires strive for new horizons." The philosophical objective continues to reach out further and further, and upon reaching maturity and understanding, I now know that the universe is endless! - Mom, I am still doing what I came to do!

One must be flexible with technology and synergize their personal statement with the evolution of the medium. Never in the history of the world have we seen such changes in the way our society receives and processes information. Our thoughts and methodologies are evolving almost on a "real time" basis. As an artist who has worked in the electronic medium for over 30 years I have witnessed many of these changes first hand.

GARTEL THE ARTIST

ARTIST BACKGROUND:
Gartel is a founding "PIONEER" of the Digital Art movement. Gartel could also be considered the father of the paintbox era (circa 1986), who actually started this technique 10 years prior to any software being written for painting and photo-manipulation. He used digital synthesizers, TVs and then output photographically as a dyesub & Polaroid prints. It was also 10 years before Warhol did his Amiga prints of Deborah Harry.

His work has been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, Joan Whitney Payson Museum, Long Beach Museum of Art, Princeton Art Museum, PS 1, Norton Museum and in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History and the Bibliotheque Nationale. His biography for his pioneering efforts is included in "Who's Who," "Who's Who in the East," "Who's Who in America," "Who's Who in American Art," and "Who's Who in the World."

Born and raised in New York City, Mr. Gartel had the opportunity to teach Andy Warhol how to use the Amiga Computer, went to School of Visual Arts, with fellow art student, grafitti artist Keith Haring, where he earned his BFA degree majoring in Graphics, and started his electronic career working side by side with Nam June Paik at Media Study/Buffalo in upstate New York.

Gartel had many associations with musicians such as Debbie Harry (Blonde) Sid Vicious (Sex Pistols), Stiv Bators (Dead Boys) Johnny Thunders (New York Dolls) Ace Frehley (Kiss) and Wendy O Williams (Plasmatics). Recently, Gartel has created artwork for such Pop Culture stars such as Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.

He has several monograph books on his work:
"Laurence Gartel: A Cybernetic Romance" published by Gibbs Smith, (c) 1989 Utah. Introduction to the book is written by video guru Nam June Paik.

"GARTEL: Arte & Tecnologia" published by Edizioni Mazzotta, (c) 1998 Milano, Italy. Introduction to the book is written by noted art historian and critic
Pierre Restany. 250 pages over 400 colour plates.

Gartel was recently included in the Italian Art History Textbook: "La Storia Dell Arte" published by Editions Giunti (c) 2001, Firenze. Michelangelo at the front of the book and GARTEL being the last page representing "NEW VISUAL LANGUAGES."

Click to read Gartel RESUME