Early Masters

Your art teacher contemplating how fast she would have to go if she picked up the glass case and ran. 📸

From the architecture to the stained glass windows and even the chasubles, Henri Matisse imagined every detail of the Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence (located in the French Riviera) as a total work of art. The blue, green and yellow stained glass windows flood the chapel with a vibrant light, a symbol of serenity and hope. The vestments are predictably colorful and bold, with no trace of sombre priestly blacks or browns (and get pulled out on special occasions to be worn by the lucky priests). They are a striking contrast to the minimalist Stations of the Cross painted in black on the wall.
The artist would describe this project as his masterpiece and artistic testament. Sitting there in this little piece of paradise you have to wonder, how could an agnostic person have created something so deeply spiritual, offering peace and light for future generations.

Fascinating visit to the asylum where Van Gogh committed himself in May 1889. (he stayed there until May 1890). Many of his most famous works were painted here- and many more unfamiliar ones. Despite his mental illness, he was prolific during his stay (painting over 150 works of art). He only spent a few hours in the solitary confinement cell with the straight jacket on. And cold plunges were believed to “drive away their deranged ideas.” Most inmates shared the communal dormitories, but thanks to Theo’s payment, he had his own room, and Dr. Peyron provided him with two more rooms, one for painting and one for storing his paintings. Looking out through the bars he created one of the world’s most iconic paintings, “The Starry Night.”

Two ambitious students are working on self-portraits— in the style of Artemisia Gentileschi no less! After completing the underdrawing in charcoal, and going over the lines with a burnt sienna imprimatura, (Italian for ‘first paint layer’), they worked on the ‘dead layer’ or underpainting stage. After refining the underpainting a little more, the students built up the higher tonal values by slowly adding white. Btw, the monochromatic stage ‘dead layer’ was nicknamed that because the faces often look ghostly white! In the coming weeks - color. Can’t wait to see the outcome. Stay tuned!

Elaine de Kooning was commissioned to paint John F. Kennedy in 1962. She preferred her subjects to be very still but every sitting was extremely challenging for her because he was constantly surrounded with a buzz of activity. Everyday he looked just a little different to her. She returned to New York, and in the coming months, filled her studio space with studies of him. When she learned he had been killed she could not bring herself to paint for months. The crushing loss was too much.
This is the first Elaine de Kooning painted by an Early Masters student and we couldn’t be more proud.

Two pears and a puddin’.

As a Canadian, this Toronto street scene brings me back to my old stomping grounds! And seeing my student finally finish her painting of the famous Lawren Harris work “Houses, Richmond Street in 1911,” was extremely gratifying! After many months of patience and meticulous brush work, she is ready to move on to her next masterpiece. This talented student has been with me since she was teeny tiny and it makes a teacher PROUD to see her grow as a confident young artist. Younger students from another class followed along with the progress with great interest and even left lovely comments on sticky notes on the back of the canvas. My students are all so supportive of one another!
Harris was a founding member of the Group of Seven and famous for his monumental works of northern landscapes. However, some of his earlier works of long ago city scenes bring us back to a simpler time, on a quiet street, in a calmer world. See it for yourself at the Art Gallery of Ontario.

Pass the french fries please. A proud student holds up her first ‘hyperrealism’ painting.

Need a perfect caption for this talented twosome holding their priceless art - suggestions please ! 💕 👯‍♀️ ❤️

Nobody knows for sure who she is, but we DO know The Girl with the Pearl Earring was painted in 1665 by Johannes Vermeer and some experts have suggested that she could be the oldest of his 10 children! We’ll never know her true identity but she continues to capture the imagination of people around the world, including our talented Friday student who worked tirelessly for weeks on the ‘Mona Lisa of the North.’ What else do we know? Well, it’s one of about 35 known Vermeer paintings known in the world. That’s it’s a ’tronie’; a painting intended to study and artists often depict these figures in ‘exotic’ garments, which helps them to show off their advanced painting techniques. We also know that the paint used to paint the turban was uber expensive. The ultramarine paint Vermeer used on that turban was made from a crushed blue semi-precious stone called lapis lazuli and this paint was one that only a few fellow painters used. Super luxe! And finally…she’s priceless. The museum where she hangs will never sell
her ( the Mauitshuis in The Hague) and you’ll have to go THERE if you want to see her. She’ll never tour again!