A large scale abstract painting by Los Angeles artist Don Giffin titled Skin Deep, executed in 2001. This mixed media work on canvas exemplifies the luminous surfaces and perceptual effects associated with Southern California’s Finish Fetish and Light and Space movements. The composition reveals a glowing field of layered pigment and resin that shifts between warm amber, gold, and violet tones. From a distance the painting appears as a smooth, glass like surface with subtle radiance emerging from within. As the viewer moves closer, the surface begins to dissolve into layered textures and atmospheric color transitions, creating an optical experience that changes with light and perspective.
Giffin was known for constructing paintings through complex layers of paint, gesso, and industrial materials which he manipulated as they dried, creating surfaces that blur the boundaries between painting, photography, and printmaking. The result is a work that feels both physical and luminous, a characteristic that critics often connected to the legacy of California Finish Fetish artists who embraced resins, plastics, and high-gloss surfaces influenced by automobile culture and industrial fabrication.
Born in Chicago in 1948, Giffin studied at California State University Northridge before establishing himself within the Los Angeles art scene. He exhibited extensively, including five solo exhibitions at the Christopher Grimes Gallery in Santa Monica. His work was also featured in the 1997 Orange County Museum of Art Biennial, placing him among an influential group of contemporary Los Angeles artists exploring the intersection of abstraction, light, and materiality. Art critic David Pagel of the Los Angeles Times described Giffin’s works as possessing “perfectly smooth, glass like surfaces when viewed from afar that seem to decay as one approaches,” noting their ability to create a visceral emotional response through color, surface, and physical presence.
With its monumental scale and radiant surface, Skin Deep represents a powerful example of Giffin’s mature practice and reflects the broader influence of the Finish Fetish and Light and Space traditions that emerged in Southern California during the late twentieth century.
Hand signed, titled, and dated by the artist on the verso.
Artist: Don Giffin (American, 1948-2003)
Title: Skin Deep
Year: 2001
Dimensions: 74”H x 59”H x 3”D
Medium: Mixed media with resin pigment on canvas
Movement: Finish Fetish / Light and Space abstraction
Origin: Los Angels, California
Signed: Hand signed, titled and dated on verso
A large scale abstract painting by Los Angeles artist Don Giffin titled Skin Deep, executed in 2001. This mixed media work on canvas exemplifies the luminous surfaces and perceptual effects associated with Southern California’s Finish Fetish and Light and Space movements. The composition reveals a glowing field of layered pigment and resin that shifts between warm amber, gold, and violet tones. From a distance the painting appears as a smooth, glass like surface with subtle radiance emerging from within. As the viewer moves closer, the surface begins to dissolve into layered textures and atmospheric color transitions, creating an optical experience that changes with light and perspective.
Giffin was known for constructing paintings through complex layers of paint, gesso, and industrial materials which he manipulated as they dried, creating surfaces that blur the boundaries between painting, photography, and printmaking. The result is a work that feels both physical and luminous, a characteristic that critics often connected to the legacy of California Finish Fetish artists who embraced resins, plastics, and high-gloss surfaces influenced by automobile culture and industrial fabrication.
Born in Chicago in 1948, Giffin studied at California State University Northridge before establishing himself within the Los Angeles art scene. He exhibited extensively, including five solo exhibitions at the Christopher Grimes Gallery in Santa Monica. His work was also featured in the 1997 Orange County Museum of Art Biennial, placing him among an influential group of contemporary Los Angeles artists exploring the intersection of abstraction, light, and materiality. Art critic David Pagel of the Los Angeles Times described Giffin’s works as possessing “perfectly smooth, glass like surfaces when viewed from afar that seem to decay as one approaches,” noting their ability to create a visceral emotional response through color, surface, and physical presence.
With its monumental scale and radiant surface, Skin Deep represents a powerful example of Giffin’s mature practice and reflects the broader influence of the Finish Fetish and Light and Space traditions that emerged in Southern California during the late twentieth century.
Hand signed, titled, and dated by the artist on the verso.
Artist: Don Giffin (American, 1948-2003)
Title: Skin Deep
Year: 2001
Dimensions: 74”H x 59”H x 3”D
Medium: Mixed media with resin pigment on canvas
Movement: Finish Fetish / Light and Space abstraction
Origin: Los Angels, California
Signed: Hand signed, titled and dated on verso
