Education 1968 BA Art & Design, University of Florida, Gainesville.
Awards and Honors 2022-23Creative Pinellas Arts Agency, Mentors Program, mentoring an emerging artist. 2020-21Creative Pinellas Arts Agency, Mentors Program, mentoring an emerging artist. 2020Featured Artist, Artsy Shark.com, juried artists portfolio gallery. 2018-19Creative Pinellas Arts Agency, Mentors Program, mentoring an emerging artist. 2015Acquisition of three works for permanent collection, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, curator: Lynn Whitelaw. 2013Elizabeth Morse Genius Award, Florida Artist Group Annual Exhibition, LeMoyne Center for the Visual Arts, Tallahassee, juror: Jaune Quick-to-See Smith. 2007Pinellas County Division of Cultural Affairs, Artist Enhancement Grant. 1998 Art featured in St. Petersburg produced film, Johnny Blue. 1997 Purchase Award:Florida Gulf Coast Museum of Art, Largo, FL. 1996 Wood Memorial Award: Spring Juried Show, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, Judge: Neil Watson, curator Tampa Museum of Art. 1995 Artists Resource Fund Grant, Pinellas County Arts Council, Clearwater. 1992 Best of Show:CAS Show, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL, juror: William Shinsky, art consultant, Atlanta. 1990 Mayfaire Art Exhibition Purchase Award: Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland. 1990Individual Artist Fellowship Award, State of Florida Department of Culture, Tallahassee. 1990Artists Resource Fund Grant, Pinellas County Arts Council, Clearwater. 1987 Merit Award:Gulf Coast Biennial, Florida Gulf Coast Art Center, Belleair,juror: Jane Kessler, Curator of Contemporary Art, Mint Museum, Charlotte, NC. 1987Award of Excellence, Gasparilla Art Festival, Tampa, juror: Vivien Raynor, art critic, The New York Times. 1986 Jury Award, Purchase Award:Summer Sizzler, Ruth Eckerd Hall Gallery, Clearwater, juror:Bruce Dempsey, Director, Jacksonville Art Museum, Jacksonville.
Select Exhibitions
Solo Exhibitions 2016 Denis Gaston: Poetry of the Eye, Gallery 221 @ Hillsborough Community College,Dale Mabry Campus, Tampa, FL. 2015 Denis Gaston, Recent Work, Art Way Gallery, St. Petersburg College, Seminole Campus, Seminole, FL. 2014 Denis Gaston, New Work, Five Deuces Galleria, St. Petersburg, FL. 2014 Denis Gaston, New Work, Long Center Gallery, Clearwater, FL. 2013 Denis Gaston: YaySayers And NaySayers, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 2010 Denis Gaston, New Work, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 2007 Denis Gaston, Recent Work, Galleries at Salt Creek, St. Petersburg. 2007 Denis Gaston, New Paintings, City Hall Gallery, Clearwater. 2004 Denis Gaston, Body as a Vessel, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 2001 Denis Gaston, Recent Work, OB Gallery, Ozona Beach, FL. 2000 Denis Gaston, New Work, Fusion Gallery, St. Petersburg. 1999 7 Sisters: Denis Gaston Paintings, TECO Art Gallery, Tampa, FL 1997 Denis Gaston Paintings, Pinellas Center for the Arts, St. Petersburg. 1996 Denis Gaston: Ten Years, Octagon Art Gallery, Clearwater. 1994 Denis Gaston, Recent Work, Donn Roll Art Gallery, Sarasota, FL. 1991 Denis Gaston, Drawings, Scarfone Gallery, University of Tampa, Tampa. 1988 Denis Gaston: Pastels, TECO Art Gallery, Tampa. 1988 The Second Coming: Drawings by Denis Gaston, Florida Gulf Coast Art Center, Belleair, FL.
Two Person Exhibitions 2019Knuckle Sandwich, Denis Gaston & Gabriel Ramos, Leslie Curran Gallery, St. Petersburg. 1997Denis Gaston and Candace Garrett, Galleries at Salt Creek, St. Petersburg. 1995Denis Gaston and Bill Renc, St. Petersburg Little Theatre, St. Petersburg. 1990 Denis Gaston, Joy Brace, New Work, Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin, FL. 1989 Bede Clark, Ceramics and Denis Gaston, Drawing, Elliott Gallery, Eckerd College,St. Petersburg. 1988 Denis Gaston and Jane Jaskevich, Clayton Gallery, Tampa. 1988 Robert Calvo, Sculpture, Denis Gaston, Drawing, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg.
Group Exhibitions 2020Mighty Fine, Invitational exhibition, Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin. 202070th Annual Exhibition, FLAG, Foosaner Art Museum, Melbourne, FL. 2020Pain, Process & Promise, Invitational exhibition, Alliance For Arts, Ft. Myers, FL 2020Loading The Virtual Machine, Invitational exhibition, DistanceGallery.com 2019 69th Annual Exhibition, FLAG, Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota. 2019 Florida Artist Group, Naples Art Association Gallery, Naples, FL. 2017 100 Years/100 Artists, Invitational exhibition, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 2017 Fall Into Greatness: LRMA Celebrates 15 Years, works from the permanent collection,Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, FL. 2017 67th Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, Coral Springs Museum of Art, Coral Springs, FL. 2016 Exquisite Porch, invitational exhibition, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 2015 World on a String: Masters of Puppetry, Florida CraftArt Gallery, St. Petersburg. 2015 Sketchbook: From Conception to Completion, Crossroads Gallery, St. Petersburg College, Clearwater, FL. 2013 Intergalactic, invitational exhibition, Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin. 2013 63rd Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, LeMoyne Arts Center, Tallahassee, FL. 2012 62nd Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, Ringling School of Art & Design, Sarasota. 2011 61st Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, Maitland Art & History Museum, Maitland, FL. 2009 59th Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, Armory Art Center, West Palm Beach, FL 2009 58th Annual Exhibition, Florida Artist Group, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, FL. 2008 TEA Exhibition, C. Emerson Fine Art Gallery, St. Petersburg. 2007 At Home with Art, invitational exhibition, Florida Craftsmen Gallery, St. Petersburg. 2006 ’34689’ Exhibition, Blue Moon Gallery, Tarpon Springs. 2005 Unwrapped, invitational exhibition, Dunedin Fine Arts Center, Dunedin. 2003 Dwellings, invitational exhibition, Dunedin Fine Arts Center, Dunedin. 2003 Making Faces, traveling exhibition, Pinellas County Schools, FL. 2003 Four + Two, Galleries at Salt Creek, St. Petersburg. 1999 Mayfaire Masters, invitational exhibition, Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, FL 1999 Southeast & Florida Artists in the Permanent Collection, Gulf Coast Museum of Art, Largo, FL. 1998 Florida Biennial III, Gulf Coast Museum of Art, Belleair, juror: Todd DeShields, curatorof American Art, Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC. 1997 Undercurrent/Overview: Recent Work by Tampa Bay Artists, Invitational exhibition, Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa, curated by Michael Bennett, Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota. 1997 Works in the Permanent Collection, Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland. 1995 May Show, Arts-On-The-Park Gallery, Lakeland. 1994 Contemporary Drawing, Elliott Gallery, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg. 1994 Small Works Invitational, Valencia Junior College, Orlando, FL. 1993 Major Florida Artists Show, Foster Harmon Galleries, Sarasota. 1992 Present & Future Tense, Florida Fellowship Artists, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg. 1992 Contemporary Works, Florida Artists in the Permanent Collection, Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, FL. 1991 Florida, State of the Arts, South Florida Art Center, Miami Beach, FL. 1991 All Florida Exhibition of Contemporary Art, The Boca Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL juror: Dennis Barrie, Director, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH. 1991 Contemporary Print Invitational, Elon College, Elon, NC, juror: William Shinsky, art consultant, Atlanta, GA. 1990 Red Clay Survey, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL, juror: Dr. Harry Rand, Curator of Painting and Sculptor, National Museum of American Art, Washington, D.C. 1990 Annual Juried Exhibition, Orlando Museum of Art, Orlando, Juror:Lisa Phillips, Curator of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY. 1990 Florida’s Finest: Florida Fellowship Artists, Center of Contemporary Art, N. Miami, andCapitol Gallery, Tallahassee. 1988 Tampa Triennial: A Juried Show of Southeast Artists, Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa. 1988 Influences from the Untaught: Contemporary Drawings, The Drawing Center, New York, NY, curated by Benny Andrews. 1987 Gulf Coast Biennial, Juried exhibition, Florida Gulf Coast Art Center, Belleair. 1987 Fantasy Landscapes: Landscape Images by Southeast Artists, Tampa Museum West, Tampa. 1987 Encore Eight, Invitational exhibition, Ruth Eckerd Hall Gallery, Clearwater. 1987 3 from St. Pete: Robert Schott, Denis Gaston, Celeste Simon, Art Expressions Gallery, Melbourne, FL. 1986 The Artist’s Self: Self Portraits by Southeast Artists, invitational exhibition, Florida Gulf Coast Art Center, Belleair. 1986 Summer Sizzler, Juried exhibition, Ruth Eckerd Hall Gallery, Clearwater.
Collections Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs. Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland. St. Petersburg College, St. Petersburg. Raymond James Financial Corporation, St. Petersburg. Holland & Knight Associates law firm, Tampa. West & Company Advertising, Tampa. State of Florida Public Art Collection, Regional Service Center, Largo. Pinellas County Center for the Arts, St. Petersburg. Pinellas County Public Art Collection, Clearwater. Stetson University College of Law, Gulfport. Eckerd College, St. Petersburg.
Accomplishments 1992 “Studio Waltz”, founder of annual North Pinellas County tour of artists’ studios. 1988 “Professional Association of Visual Artists (PAVA), co-founder of state wide artist guild. 1988 “Cool Art Show”, founder of annual artist run indoor art exhibition.
Teaching Experience 2014 PARC, St. Petersburg, FL, taught art to developmentally challenged students. 1992 Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin, FL, taught classes based on book “No More Sec- ond-Hand Art.” 1992-2002Taught workshops based on the book “No More Second-Hand Art.”
Select Bibliography 2020 “Art Corner, Denis Gaston,” Dunedin TV, Seth Walker, November 6. 2020 “Art Scape, Meet Denis Gaston”, Tampa Bay Business For Culture & The Arts, Susana Weymouth, TampaBay Times, November. 2015 "Saw Palm Literature and Art Magazine", University of South Florida, Tampa. 2007 “Art Smart,” St. Petersburg Times, Bill Coats, November 16. 2007 “A Stroke of Inspiration,” Flair Magazine, Tampa, FL, Jenny Carey, October. 2003 “Denis Gaston, Artist,” Imago Magazine, Dunedin, FL, Alan Mock, May. 1998 "Art Lovers Guide To Florida,” Pineapple Press, Sarasota, FL, Anne Jeffrey. 1996 “An Artist True To Himself,” St. Petersburg Times, Mary Ann Marger, July 5. 1994 "Dunedin Artist Steps Out of The Shadows,” St. Pete Times, Mary Ann Marger, Feb. 11 1991 "Denis Gaston's Artistic Vision," St. Petersburg Times, Mary Ann Marger, Oct. 25. 1991 "A Warm Welcome for Some Cool Art," St. Pete Times, Mary Ann Marger, July 19. 1990 "Brilliant Colors of Faith," Seikyo Times, Terry Ellis, Los Angeles, CA, October. 1989 "Raising Eyebrows," Lakeland Ledger, Lakeland, FL, Paul Rybinski, May 18. 1988 "An Artist Struggles Free," St. Petersburg Times, Mary Ann Marger, July 8. 1987 "Encore 8 Exhibition Is A Heady Mix," St. Petersburg Times, Charles Benbow, June 5 1987 "Denis Gaston: Pastel Artist," Suncoast Arts Review, Clearwater, FL, S. Haas, June. 1986 “Summer Sizzler Shines,” St. Petersburg Independent, Jeanette Crane, July 4.