Ted Gordon

I particularly like looking at these illustrations for the effect they have of creating volume within a volume. The different shapes and oddity of the facial expressions encourages the beholder to explore the work for hidden features. Although the art works were made on the back of cardboard boxes and scribbled down with simple ball point pens, through the usage of thin lines and small oval shapes the technique appears delicate and refined. Some pictures have no real delineation, but instead Gordon chooses to play with width, shape and colour contrast to obtain the same effect. Moreover, by using a different object for each facial feature the illustrator attracts the beholders attention to every detail. 

Ted Gordon was born in Kentucky in 1924. He attended high school in New York, then moved to San Francisco where he married and graduated from San Francisco State College. Until his retirement in 1987, Gordon was employed as a mental health worker in both San Francisco and Los Angeles.