Dona Gelsinger

From a very young age, I had a love and appreciation for art. I’d sit for hours watching my Grandfather as he painted massive, rugged landscapes in oil. Each brush stroke told a story and created a memory. It was here that I first fell in love with art. In college I studied art at Cal State Long Beach and after graduation, worked as a staff artist for Ralph’s, a grocery chain in Southern California.

After starting a family, I wanted to spend more time at home, so I left my job and started working freelance.  I worked on all sorts of odd jobs, portraits, calligraphy, product art and so forth.  After a tragic loss in our family, the Lord blessed me with a project that would prove to be very cathartic.  I was commissioned to paint 14 near life-size paintings depicting the Passion of Christ for my church, St Denis Catholic Church in Diamond Bar, CA.  The project spanned 2 years, consuming my artistic energies and involving everyone in our family in one way or another.  I felt very honored and humbled to receive this commission and felt the Lord’s hand in this the whole time.

Shortly thereafter we moved to Oregon, drawn by small town living and the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.  Moving and starting fresh was tough and financially it was a struggle early on.  At one point, I worked at the mall in a discount art gallery, anything to stay connected to the art world, if only in a small way.  I spent the slow hours at night in the store drawing posters for upcoming sales.  All the while, I never stopped working on my portfolio, trusting that the Lord had a plan for the talent I’d been given.

After years of submitting artwork,  I received my first publishing deal with Arthur Kaplan to produce the Stations of the Cross in print.  Their office was on 34th Street in NY and we laughed, it was our own miracle on 34th street.  Not long after this, I started working with Lightpost Publishing, Danbury Mint and then The Bradford Exchange.  When I painted my first little angel for Bradford, my career was officially launched.  I’ve always been passionate about creating art for products.  This was my start in licensing and I’ve never looked back.

We’ve been in business over 30 years and I’m as driven today as I was when I first started. I work with an amazing team providing art to over 100 companies across the globe. We are filled with gratitude for our customers and the wonderful people who buy our licensed products. I thank God every day for all the guidance and blessings we’ve been given along the way.