About Gil Folger

About Gil Image

I Create 3D Art Paintings and Children’s Books Illustrated in 3D Images

Gil (Gilda) Folger

    • Associate Professor of Languages – Dowling College, New York.
    • Graduate of Bet Berl Teacher’s College, Israel
    • Studied English, French and Hebrew – Haifa University, Israel
    • Dowling College, NY – Studied English and taught French
    • Hebrew teacher in various Hebrew schools
    • Books writer and illustrator in English, French and Hebrew
    • Translator – English, French and Hebrew

MY Story

I was born in Casablanca, Morocco, lived in France, Israel and The United States.
I always loved the arts, drawing, sketching and painting. My first experience was drawing a Chinese pagoda at the early age of three!

In the kibbutz (Israel) I painted big placards for the holidays and had always had an entourage of kids admiring my art.

I also won a scholarship at the ABC school of Art in Paris for the best rendition of a Modigliani portrait. I painted now and then, but only around the year 2000 I took up painting seriously. I joined some years ago the 9 muses with the late Peter Cocuzza master and later on the enlightening coaching of Hans Heubel with the exhilarating results of this website.

When I lived in Fort Lauderdale, I was a member of ArtServe and participated in several shows. In my journey I have been blessed with three beautiful children and have travelled around the world. While making my way I have learned about many cultures and people. Currently, I live in Aventura, Florida where the sun is shining also in our hearts, and my soul is at peace to paint to fulfilment.

How do I paint in 3D?

I have been asked this question so many times and I decided to put the answer in writing in my website. It is actually simple physics:

    • Heat goes up – Cold goes down, right?
    • Cold colors like whites, blues, greens, etc.… recede
    • Hot colors like reds, yellows, oranges etc.…. come forward
    • So I paint in layers and start with the cold colors, building up towards the hot colors….

Please look in my paintings and see how this stratagem works out!
The outcome is totally exhilarating!

From Chiaroscuro Painting/Drawing to 3D Painting

Using the Chiaroscuro technique that originated during the Renaissance as drawing on colored paper, where the artist worked from the paper’s base tone toward light using white paint and toward dark using ink, I ended up with 3D Painting.

The traditions in illuminated paintings, such as Leonardo Da Vinci, Caravaggio and Rembrandt works used to be called “chiaroscuro drawings“, Chiaroscuro began as imitations of this technique.   When discussing Italian art, the term sometimes is used to mean painted images in monochrome or two colors, more generally known in English by the French equivalent “Grisaille”

The term broadened in meaning early on to cover all strong contrasts in illumination between light and dark areas in art, which is now the primary meaning.

The more technical use of the term chiaroscuro is the effect of light modeling in painting/drawing where three-dimensional volume is suggested by the value gradation of color and the analytical division of light and shadow shapes—often called “Shading”
Raphael paintings illustrated, with light coming from the left demonstrates both delicate modelling chiaroscuro to give volume to the body of the model, and strong chiaroscuro in the more common sense, in the contrast between the well-lit model and the very dark background of foliage. Compositions where at least some principal elements of the main composition show the transition between light and dark, In drawings and prints, modelling chiaroscuro often is achieved by the use of shading by parallel lines. Washes or dotting effects, and “surface tone” are other techniques.

To further Chiaroscuro, I took a leap of faith and started playing with “Hot and Cold” colors beginning with “Cold” colors background” adding layers of colors towards “Hot” colors. Finishing up the compositions with “Highlights and Lowlights, thus getting the 3-Dimensional effect….

My books

I write and illustrate children’s books, in 3D of course! And in 3 languages: English, French and Hebrew:

I am also available to illustrate your book. Please contact me.

Aventura, USA

Gil3dimage@gmail.com