The Artists: Walter Gaudnek
Mapping the Florida Terrain.
Go.
Born in Czechoslovakia in 1931, pop artist Walter Gaudnek is known for his blend of his bold colors, philosophy, religious symbolism, labyrinth installations, and mixtures of performance and art. He also draws heavy inspiration from Bohemia, Caravaggio, Kazimir Malevich, and Pablo Picasso. A 1957 Fulbright Scholar who received his doctorate from New York University, he joined the art faculty of the University of Central Florida (then the Florida Technological University) in 1970. Dr. Gaudnek previously taught at universities in Los Angeles, New York, and Ohio. He founded the Long Island University Art Museum in Greenvale, New York. His honors from UCF include Distinguished Researcher of the Year (1990), the Teaching Incentive Program Award (1995 and 2005), the Professional Excellence Program Award (1997), the President’s Award (1999), and the Research Incentive Award (2002). In 1994, the Sudetendeutecher Landsmannschaft, an organization dedicated to recognizing the achievements of the Czech-German diaspora, awarded him the Kulturpreis for Fine Art and Architecture.
Remeber Holbein.
Indian River Lagoon, 1974.
Dr. Gaudnek’s work can be seen at the Gaudnek Museum in Germany, as well as the UCF library, which contains a retrospective of his work from 1945-2007. He has participated in more than 200 solo and group exhibitions, installations, and performances in Germany, Italy, Spain, England, Colombia, the Czech Republic, and the United States. His works have also been exhibited in museums in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Virginia, Arizona, Florida, Europe, and Brazil, as well as schools, banks, office buildings, libraries, theaters, museums, and private homes in Europe and the United States. He has been featured in documentaries in San Francisco, New York, Munich, São Paolo, and Paris.
Dr. Gaudnek will also be featured in Art Legends exhibitions at the Orange County Regional History Center (March 5 through May 29, 2016).