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Gilkerson began painting in watercolor, moved to acrylic
while studying for her BFA, and then she transitioned
to oil in graduate school. She prefers the flexibility of
oil, although she still paints in the other two media.
Additionally, she began creating monotypes 15 years ago
when working with master printmaker Phillip Garrett. The
freedom involved in creating monotypes pushed her to a
looser style of painting. Working in a variety of media has
helped her overall practice. “I advocate to my students that
they cross-train,” she says. “Working in two very different
media strengthens your primary medium because it forces
you to think outside of your normal way of doing things.”
With regard to size, Gilkerson likes to shake things up,
working anywhere from 5x7 inches for plein air studies
up to 4x6 feet or larger for studio works. “I really like the
intimate feel of a small painting but also love the drama of
very large pieces,” she says.
When painting en plein air, everything must fit in
a backpack. She compartmentalizes with cigar boxes.
“I have a rule for myself that I can’t take any more paint
tubes than will fit in a cigar box,” she says. A second box
holds her painting knives, which are her primary tool for
paint application in the field. “I never paint with a brush
outdoors, primarily because of ease of cleanup and speed
of use,” she says.
Gilkerson confesses that she’s a painting knife addict. “I
didn’t start using them until 10 years ago, and they’ve made
a huge difference in my painting process.” For plein air work,
she especially likes those with black anodized metal because
they prevent light from bouncing into the eyes.
TWO FOR ONE
Gilkersonoftenpaintsthesamesceneatdifferenttimes
ofthedayandyear,asseeninHighSummerGreens,
below,andLateSummerMorning, atbottom(bothoil
onpanel,5x5).For studio work, Gilkerson also uses brushes, favoring
filberts because of the variety of strokes they can make.
When working on very large paintings, she has taken to
nontraditional tools, such as rollers and house-painting
brushes, which she often attaches to extender poles.
Her standard oil painting colors, whether in or out of
the studio, consist of a split- or double-primary palette
with warm and cool versions of the primaries.