Gabrielson, Walter

Walter Gabrielson was born in Orr, Minn. in 1935 and moved to Inglewood, Calif. with his family in 1953. Gabrielson attended both Chouinard Art Institute and then transferred to the Otis Art Institute receiving his M.F.A in 1965. While still at Otis, Gabrielson worked as a printmaker for the Fantasmagoric Print Workshop and later for the Tamarind Institute. In the fall of 1966, Gabrielson began serving as a professor of art at California State University, Northridge and continued until 1981. During this time he participated actively in the local and national arts community. Most notably he was part of the founding committee of the Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art where he served as publications chairman. In 1974, he worked with Ed Wortz to lead an influential seminar through the UCLA extension program focusing on "The Ironic Los Angeles Artist," which included participation from John Baldessari, Ed Ruscha, Terry Allen, Karen Carson and many others. Gabrielson exhibited his work throughout his life, including one-man and group shows in the Southern California area, as well as nationally and internationally. Notable exhibitions include a two-man show with James Turrell at the ARCO Art Center in 1976, "Decade, Los Angeles Painting in the Seventies" at the Art Center School of Design in 1981, and the "Collection of Michael Blankfort" exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1982. Gabrielson had an ongoing relationship with the Contemporary Arts Forum of Santa Barbara, California, until his death in November 2008.