Happy Birthday Gregory Gallo

I'm missing my old friend Greg Gallo today and thinking about him on his birthday. I worked for Greg at WG Studios in Queens NY in the 1990's for a number of years. We were family. The studio was just that - a studio apartment that was long and narrow with a single bathroom. It was a smoke filled place and there was a pool table, tv, and lots of books. We worked from 11 - 7 every day which was a schedule that I liked. This was to accommodate Greg's painting schedule (he liked to sleep in). Greg was a kind of scary and intense guy with a thick Long Island accent who had red hair and a red beard. That intensity was what made him such a great artist. He was the first "real" artist I ever met. The man created almost non-stop for as long as I knew him. He designed all the art for the business which was mostly licensing for apparel companies. Each day, he'd give me a few assignments - he'd quickly sketch out what he wanted the finished piece to look like and then send me on my way - so he could get back to painting!

Greg painted all day long (he'd usually have a movie playing in the background or a great album (he introduced me to Joni Mitchell's Hissing of Summer Lawns). At 7 pm, he would sometimes send me on a beer run so he could start his long night. :) Greg was constantly experimenting with different painting styles and he liked to do a "series" of paintings. Sometimes they were very detailed and a single painting could take days or longer. At other times he could knock out five pieces in a single night! It was always fun coming in the next day to see what he had done.

Though I found him intense and intimidating, I loved him. Greg was really a loving Italian guy who cared about the people he worked with and the bigger world in which we lived. He was always thinking about nature and the environment and how we fit into it. This was reflected in his art where he would often incorporate the earth, animals, people and spirits. He told me I was in one of his paintings once but would never tell me which one exactly!

I managed to acquire a few of his pieces when I worked there. The first was from my favorite series that he had done. Each piece was very detailed and took many days to finish. He worked on several at the same time and I remember that he put himself and his girlfriend (future wife) into a couple of the pieces. I so loved them that I offered him a few hundred dollars for one (which was a lot back then). He agreed and sold it to me though he tried to get it back from me later. I wouldn't part with it and it is hanging in my home today! I used to kid him that I couldn't give it back because that was my retirement. :) Another time, I came into work one morning and there was a big 4ft x 4ft canvas that just blew me away. I gushed over it and Greg said "give me a dollar", which I did, and it was mine! That's the kind of guy he was...

Click here to see his some of his paintings: GALLO

Early Gallo

Many years ago, I was helping artist Gregory Gallo clean out his studio and we came across this piece (which he told me to throw in the trash!). I convinced him to let me keep it. It's a pretty early example of his work and is dated 6/27/84. The main image with the face seems to be painted on a piece of cardboard, and the background with the pink, white, and green is actually a very thick piece of wood - might have been a cabinet door or something. (click for larger image)

Gregory Gallo II

This was, I think, the very first original piece of art I ever purchased. I bought it from the artist, whom I worked for many years ago (proabaly around 1992), for what was, at the time, a relatively large amount of money. There are actually about 6 or 7 paintings in this "series" that look very similar to this one in compisition and color. They were all very detailed, and were my favorite pieces he had done. I had to have one and I hit him up at the right time with a good cash offer! (click for larger image.)

Gregory Gallo

This painting was a gift of sorts. I used to work for the artist back in New York a long time ago. I saw this painting the morning after it was completed and was really blown away by it. I made such a fuss over it that my friend sold it to me for $2. It's very large at about 4 feet by 4 feet and is dated 10/14/92. The photo is not the best since the canvas is not on the stretchers at the moment. (click for larger image.)