Gail Gilbert

Gail Gilbert is a self-taught visual artist whose work is deeply informed by a distinguished career in dance, performance, and choreography. She is a graduate of the North Carolina School of the Arts, where she earned a diploma in Modern Dance, and went on to perform professionally in New York with the Parsons Dance Company. During the intervals between international touring engagements, Gilbert began drawing and painting—an artistic practice that would evolve into a celebrated second career.

Her debut exhibition took place in 1996 at Thread Waxing Space in New York City, presented in conjunction with a dance concert featuring her original choreography, along with props, costumes, and sets she designed and constructed. The influence of her movement training remains central to her visual language, evident in the economy and expressiveness of her line work and the theatrical sensibility of her compositions.

Gilbert’s paintings and sculptural works frequently depict characters imbued with wit, poignancy, and surreal narrative tension. Rich in metaphor and marked by a bold, sophisticated use of color, her work invites both emotional resonance and imaginative engagement.

Now based in Las Vegas, Gilbert continues her performance career, appearing onstage as the Nursemaid in Cirque du Soleil’s KA at the MGM Grand.