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Archives for May 2013

Classical (Classic) Realism- Part 1

Mr. John Pototschnik · May 27, 2013 · Leave a Comment

A three-part series that highlights the origins and resurgence of Classic Realism and its importance to the 21st century artist.

Michael John Angel - Lamberto (Study) 11.75 x 13.75 Mixed Media
Michael John Angel – Lamberto (Study) 11.75 x 13.75 Mixed Media
It was in college that I decided to become an artist. How to achieve that goal, well, I assumed the college knew. In my ignorance, I knew very little about what it took to become an artist, nor did I even know what questions to ask.
The 1960’s did not give a young student many options, so I took the logical, affordable one. For me, growing as an artist followed the path of trial and error with some influential and valuable guidance along the way. Mainly, however, I feel I am mostly self-taught. At one point in my career, I probably considered that a badge of honor, but not anymore. Now I consider it a shame and a powerful condemnation of the sad state of art education during my formative years.
Juliette Aristides – Family - 24″x 18″ – Charcoal and sepia on toned paper
Juliette Aristides – Family – 24″x 18″ – Charcoal and sepia on toned paper
Today, with the rise of so many great educational opportunities for artists, from workshops to ateliers, things are much different. Tastes in art are changing. Hopeful students are looking for something more than the self-indulgent painting of the modernist era…those works preferred and promoted by art critics and museums for almost 100 years.
There are now art schools around the world, many in this country, that are intent on researching and restoring the teaching methods of old that produced the world’s greatest artists.
We really owe a great deal of gratitude to those who are dedicating themselves to teaching these traditional methods, for we’re already seeing the phenomenal results of such training among many of our younger artists.
David Hardy – Carla (Study) – 25″x 19″ – Charcoal and chalk
David Hardy – Carla (Study) – 25″x 19″ – Charcoal and chalk
I am so excited to bring you this 3-part interview with three of the best, all recognized living masters who have dedicated themselves to training the next generation of artists. It should be noted that my timing proved to be the worst as they were contacted just as Fall classes were about to begin. For some, my request was too much to deal with…and I totally understand. But for these three…well, what can I say but…Thank You.
In the interview that follows, my hope is that we gain a deeper understanding of what some are calling “Classical Realism”. What is it and what are it’s roots? What distinguishes classical training from other types of art instruction, and why is it important?
I think you will find this three-part interview very enlightening.
 

Michael John Angel

Michael John Angel
Michael John Angel
Michael John Angel was born in England but emigrated to Canada during his teen years. Searching for a teacher that would give him the training he craved, in the late 1960’s he found what he was looking for in Florence, Italy. Now recognized as one of the foremost traditional painters in North America, he is founder and director of Angel Academies of Art in both Canada and Italy. He has dedicated himself to not only passing on his love for classical and traditional art, but also to instilling the disciplines that lead to successful mastery of the necessary techniques.
 

Juliette Aristides

Juliette Aristides
Juliette Aristides
Juliette Aristides is the founding instructor of the Aristides Atelier at Gage Academy in Seattle, WA. and also Aristides Atelier, an on-line teaching website. A prolific writer, she has authored three books: “The Classical Drawing Atelier”, “The Classical Painting Atelier”, and “Lessons in Classical Drawing”. She believes that the goal of learning to draw and paint is attainable by anyone who is willing to pursue it. It is as accessible as learning to write or play a musical instrument. She has dedicated herself to helping others attain that goal.
 

David Hardy

David Hardy
David Hardy
David Hardy began his studies with Dallas artist, Ramon Froman, at the age of nineteen. Later he continued his studies at the American Academy of Fine Art in Chicago and the Art Students League in New York. The Atelier School of Classical Realism in the San Francisco Bay area, which David founded, focuses its attention on the marvelous range of technical artistic knowledge, understanding and observation of nature that helped make possible the impressive accomplishments of the masters of realism.
 

Interview

“Classically trained” and “classical realism” are terms often bandied about by fine artists today. What exactly is meant by those terms?

Juliette AristidesAristides: Classical Realism was a term coined by Richard Lack. On the surface it looks like a contradiction of terms. Realism often refers to an unfiltered view of everyday life. Classism works within a tradition striving for an ideal between nature and design. I imagine the term Classical Realism reflects the striving of an artist to see and express the ideal in life. I love this definition of classism from an unlikely source, the Romantic artist, Eugene Delacroix: “I would readily apply the term “classical” to all well-ordered works which satisfy the mind, not only by an accurate, noble, or lively rendering of sentiments and objects, but also by their unity and logical arrangements. In short, by all those qualities which enhance the impression by creating a final simplicity.”
David HardyHardy: The terms “Classically trained” and “Classical Realism” vary in meaning in the art community because there is a wide range of understanding and cultural sophistication amongst some of those using these terms. I choose to name my atelier the Atelier School of Classical Realism for two reasons: (1) Atelier because I have adapted some of the teaching approaches and concepts popular in Paris in the 19th century. Atelier (French for ‘studio’) studies brought a limited (small) group of students together to learn from a respected master. (2) I firmly believe, with but a few later exceptions, that the major Baroque artists brought realism to a level rarely touched since. Because of this, I have made the effort to become very involved with Baroque technology. When I think of classical realism, I think of Old Master baroque artists, such as Rembrandt, Vermeer, Hals, Reubens, Van Dyke, Carravagio and Velasquez.
Michael John AngelAngel: I hate to start off by being pedantic, but “Classical Realism” is actually a misnomer: the adjective Classical specifically refers to things from the Classical period in Greece (c.480 to 323 BC), and classical (lower-case C) refers more generally to things to do with Greece and ancient Rome. Classic Realism is better, or Traditional Realism. A classic shoe is just that, whereas a classical shoe is a sandal. The only classical painting that we have is vase painting. Realism is a difficult word, too, implying as it does things that we see in reality, i.e. everyday genre painting. This would exclude all symbolic allegory, including mythology, Christian or pagan. It also tends to exclude Conceptualism, but more about this later. I prefer Representational Painting (or Sculpture, of course), but it’s something of a mouthful. (Another much misused word is figurative. It actually means representational: a still life or a landscape are figurative, as are figural works such as nudes and portraits.) Sorry to go on, but you did ask!!

What characteristics are synonymous among all things classical?

Juliette AristidesAristides: It was said very well by the artist and author Kenyon Cox, in his book The Classic point of view (1911): “The Classic Spirit is the disinterested search for perfection; it is the love of clearness and reasonableness and self-control; it is, above all, the love of permanence and of continuity. It asks of a work of art, not that it shall be novel or effective, but that it shall be fine and noble. It seeks not merely to express individuality or emotion but to express disciplined emotion and individuality restrained by law. It strives for the essential rather than the accidental, the eternal rather than the momentary – loves impersonality more than personality, and feels more power in the orderly succession of the hours and the seasons than in the violence of earthquake or of storm.”
David HardyHardy: When I think of classical things, I think of search for truth, search for the ultimate in ideals, plus clarity and accessibility.

Why do we credit and accept the Greeks as establishing the canons of beauty?

Juliette AristidesAristides: Greek art, in the Classical period, reached a remarkable balance between adherence to proportional cannons and naturalism. The Greeks moved away from static proportional systems, identifying and formalizing the attributes of beauty from nature. When looking at images from an art history timeline, you can see the Greeks so surpassed their predecessors in sophistication that the culture almost appears to spring up out of thin air.
Michael John AngelHardy: Because they were there “firstest with the mostest”.

Why the fascination with ancient Greece and Rome?

Juliette AristidesAristides: In his book Civilization, Kenneth Clark wrote that “Western Europe had inherited an ideal invented in Greece in the 5th century B.C which was so satisfying to the mind and eye that it lasted practically unchanged for over six-hundred years”. During my travels this summer it is easy to see its powerful influence in America – in old city Philadelphia. It not only affected Europe, but when the New World was being shaped our founding fathers looked all the way back to Greco-Roman times, not only as a model for democracy, but also to their arts and architecture. It was the high point in philosophy, art, architecture, civic life, mathematics, etc and became the basis for Western Culture. The ancient Greeks were seeking after permanence and a perfect balance of reason, beauty and justice. They were trying to create a model civilization, not just copying what came before them…but innovating. Perhaps we are drawn to the best of those ideals.
David HardyHardy: Because most of the ideals and structure of western society today were fermented and given birth in ancient Greece and Rome.

Is the fascination with Greek and Roman antiquity concerned mainly with appearances or does it also extend to the philosophies of that time?

David HardyHardy: The almost exclusive survival of Greek art has been their statues. Greek statuary was an expression of their belief that all of their pantheon of gods existed as super perfect versions of humans…more handsome or beautiful, perfectly proportioned, more graceful.
Juliette AristidesAristides: Today, I don’t know that many artists are actually influenced by classical art, and architecture in the strict meaning of the word. Rather, I think there is a desire to understand artistic systems from the past so we can create the best art possible for the times in which we live. I think we are in such a disposable culture, the desire to make something that lasts, that attempts permanence, is compelling. We look back and are inspired to try a little harder.
Mr. Angel has combined these last four questions into the following response:
Michael John AngelAngel: The sculpture of ancient Greece and Rome transcends everyday reality. We feel as though we are looking through the specific – the model, the subject – into the eternal, and this is why it haunts us. How do they accomplish this? All representational art should be a combination of the empirical and the conceptual. Modern ateliers teach the basic geometrical forms – at Angel’s, we teach that there are four pure ones: the cylinder, the egg, the block, and the pyramid, plus the various hybrids between these – and how to render these, illusionistically, on a two-dimensional surface. The ancients stressed these pure forms, modifying them empirically just enough to conjure the appearance of a human, but they leave us with the sense of the Eternal, the perennial flux. They combined this with a profound grasp of gesture, itself a conceptual thing, and of grace, which they created by the use of flow-through lines, rhyming forms and proportion. A great deal of our modern Realism deals only with the empirical, thinking that this is what the masters did; however, if I were to show you a reproduction of a Caravaggio (or a Ribera, or a van Dyck…) and tell you that this is a photo of some models posing, you wouldn’t believe me for a minute. Caravaggio, with or without mirror projections, has changed something; he has conceptualized (simplified and purified) the forms to make them more powerful and, ironically enough, more convincing.

For more on these important artists:
    Michael John Angel
    Angel Academy of Art
    Juliette Aristides
    Aristides Atelier at Gage Academy
    Aristides Atelier
    David Hardy
    Atelier School of Classical Realism

A Week Painting at Scottsdale Art School with Milt Kobayashi

Nancy Boren OPA · May 13, 2013 · 3 Comments

Nancy Boren was the proud winner of the $500 Shirl Smithson Scholarship. Click here to learn more about the Shirl Smithson Scholarship.

Milt KobayashiLast December, I was fortunate to be selected for a $500 scholarship from OPA to use toward attending a workshop of my choosing. Since I’ve long admired the rich, evocative figure paintings of Milt Kobayashi I elected to sign up for his recent class at the Scottsdale Artists School. The ocotillo and palo verde trees were blooming red-orange and yellow making April in Arizona a real joy.
“Stay attuned to opportunities and be open to change” was the advice we received throughout the week. Kobayashi views his once a year class in Scottsdale as a valuable experimental time for himself as well as his students, painting new models, trying new compositions, hearing ideas from his class. He also enjoys the opportunity for creative freedom — no thinking about producing work for galleries or shows. Back home in New York he paints late into the night, the solitary work time often giving his paintings an introspective quality. Every year he says he takes something valuable back to his studio from his workshop experience; maybe something tangible, like a new color combination or maybe simply a creative spirit rejuvenated by the wide open southwest and the bonhomie of simpatico painters in the lively class. He certainly doesn’t take home the actual demos he does — the class participants were avid collectors and there was good natured rivalry on Friday when names were drawn for the chance to purchase the five new Kobayashis.
The emphasis for the week was on composition and he encouraged the 18 students to try new arrangements of objects, repeating several times that there are no rules about placement except try to avoid aligning edges. He enjoys pushing the figure to the far edge of a painting, sometimes even looking straight out to the side, an arrangement few artists use. He painted with various color schemes: dark blue (Egyptian blue by Doak) and brownish orange (Mars orange and Mars Yellow he likes for their rich opacity), orangey red-green-lavender, black with a host of grays, and the last day, medium blue and rusty red punctuated by a large area of black. He loves black and is not afraid to make the commitment to use it boldly.

Nancy Boren's Tuesday Demo Finished
Tuesday’s Demo – Final

He paints things how he thinks they should be, not exactly the way they look. Nothing is set in stone. He urges you to understand the form and why light is hitting it the way it is.
As he started to paint each morning, beginning with a tone of a warm gray, he seemed to let the design present itself to him. On occasion it was suggested by the shape and strokes of the initial tone, other times, it evolved from pencil lines over the tone as he played with placement of the objects he had in mind. On Tuesday, he decided to place the figure dead center with arms out stretched, making a cross composition. He further emphasized the centrality of the figure by placing a deliberate rectangle of blue right behind her face. He committed himself to his decision. When it came time to paint the mouth, he said with a laugh he was going to make it green, “just because I can.” He added a couple more touches of green so the color of the mouth would be repeated. The girl in the painting echoed his attitude of being attuned to possibilities and celebrating who she was.
In Kobayashi’s discussion of painting with cool and warm grays of similar values, he made a statement that distilled his decades of experience working in subtle tones: it won’t look muddy if you make the strokes crisp. When a painter starts to over blend it is easy for it to turn to mush.
Each afternoon for student painting time, there were three complex model set ups to choose from. These were orchestrated by artist Nancy Chaboun, who also participated in the workshop. Gorgeous fabrics, kimonos, fresh flowers, pillows, vases—if you couldn’t get inspired there, you couldn’t inspired anywhere.
Nancy Boren's Wednesday Demo
Besides the great class at SAS, there was so much to take advantage of while in Scottsdale. I painted Monday evening in the open studio with a wonderful model, at no charge since I was enrolled in a workshop. Wednesday evening, one of the class members invited everyone to her lovely home for dinner where we also enjoyed her art collection which has an impressive number of Milt’s paintings. Thursday afternoon is Thirsty Thursday, put on by the Friends of SAS — great hors d’oeuvres and wine. Thursday evening is gallery walk for the Main Street galleries and the rest of my free time I spent plein air painting or photographing dramatic Arizona scenery. It was a fabulous art week.
Nancy Boren's Thursday PaintingAfter some hit or miss work the first three days, finally on Thursday I felt I did a painting that incorporated some of Milt’s advice.
In case I forget in the future to embolden my compositions, use lots of neutrals in the skin, or throw in a surprising color choice now and then, I only have to look back at Tuesday’s dead-center girl with the green lipstick to remind me–and that’s easy, because she hangs on my wall.

Party Hearty! For the Fourth Year, American Art Collector Sponsors a Great Shindig!

Rosemary Carstens · May 7, 2013 · 1 Comment

Pat's oak
Pat’s oak

Friday night at the OPA national exhibition, American Art Collector (AAC) magazine will throw a party to be remembered. This year’s will take up Texas flavor and go all out—great food and music under the stars at Pat’s Hall, a historic Texas dancehall, surrounded by some of the most talented artists in the country. What more could you ask for?
As is always the case, the staff of AAC puts a lot of thought into producing their signature event, and this year is no exception. Editor Joshua Rose gives us the inside scoop:

On an earlier visit to Fredericksburg, we discovered a local BBQ joint called Cranky Franks. We immediately fell in love with their pulled pork and BBQ’d chicken and have eaten there on every subsequent trip. When we found out that this year’s party would be in Fred, there was no question who we’d have cater it.
And on a trip to Santa Fe, we met The Lonesome Heroes, an Austin-based country-western duo. They are wonderful singers, songwriters, and performers, and we all became friends quickly. We are very excited that they’ve agreed to come down from Austin to play for our party!
Imagine this—sitting on picnic benches under a giant, historic oak, drinking lemonade, eating some of the best BBQ you’ll ever taste and listening to the beautiful songs of one of Texas’s best country-western duos. We can’t think of a better way to spend a night in Fredericksburg, Texas.

Pat's Hall
Pat’s Hall

Amy Elliott Gause, AAC’s sales and marketing director, is equally excited about this year’s event: “We couldn’t have found a better place to host our annual party at the OPA National Exhibition. This just might be our best yet—and we are currently arranging for the group of elk who showed up last year to make a special appearance this year as well!”
All I can say is YUM—great BBQ and music under that vast Texas sky, good-looking cowboys, sexy cowgirls, terrific sponsors, and hundreds of creative friends who love to talk about art. My kind of fun—
As the song goes, “The stars at night are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas—” See you under the oak tree!
View some photos from last year’s American Art Collector’s party
American Art Collector Party - OPA National - Evergreen, CO - 2
American Art Collector Party - OPA National - Evergreen, CO - 10
American Art Collector Party - OPA National - Evergreen, CO - 11

Southwest Art adds flair to the 22nd Annual National Exhibition

Rosemary Carstens · May 3, 2013 · Leave a Comment

Southwest ArtOne of the top sponsors for Oil Painters of America’s national exhibition in Fredericksburg, TX, May 15-19, is Southwest Art magazine. Always quick to jump on the bandwagon and support fine artists and their work, they are once again offering two events you won’t want to miss.
First up, on May 15, will be the “Pampered” Paintout, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Kimberly Moore, SW Art’s regional sales manager, and her staff will be out in force to show the artists great spots to paint en plein air and to provide breakfast and lunch. If you attended last year’s debut Pampered Paintout in Evergreen, CO, you know it was one of the five days’ best painting parties. As Moore says, “It was a wonderful event and was so well received that we wanted to do it again! It gives the artists an opportunity to relax and paint while being pampered for a day with food, drink, music, and fun! SW Art loves working with such high caliber artists, and being able to host this exciting event is really a joy!”

Tasch House
Tasch House

This year, activities will take place in and around the beautifully restored Tatsch House at the Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park facility. Built in the mid-1880s by master cabinetmaker Peter Tatsch, using local stone, it is reminiscent of early Fredericksburg. It was recorded by the Historic American Buildings Survey of the U.S. Department of Interior and the home’s detailed plans were placed in the Library of Congress in 1936.
But that’s not all! On Sunday morning, SW Art’s Editor in Chief Kristin Hoerth will interview this year’s distinguished Artist Sherrie McGraw at the Admiral Nimitz Museum & Convention Center from 9:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. Hoerth says she is very much looking forward to the whole week of OPA events, but especially to speaking with McGraw: “I’m thrilled to be able to sit down and chat with Sherrie. My conversation with Daniel Greene last year was enlightening and entertaining, and I have no doubt that this year’s interview will be just as compelling. We at Southwest Art are so pleased to be part of these events. The OPA has a long and distinguished history of producing wonderful shows that bring artists together and present impressive paintings to collectors, and it is our pleasure to help support these endeavors.”

Register for OPA 2013 National Exhibition events here.
See you all there in the best little art town in Texas!

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