Wednesday, December 29, 2010

a few pics from the studio

Happy holidays from GCA! We are in the middle of our winter break (classes resume on Jan 3rd) but here are a few pictures I have of recent work done in our studios.
A very impressive yule log cake at our holiday party

cast drawing in progress by Connor DeJong

by Carla Crawford

by Carla Crawford

horse ecorche copy by Sam Worley

by sculpture instructor Mason Sullivan

Mason Sullivan mixing varnish for his sculpture pictured above

by Pierre Bombardier (with Angela's sculpture in the background)


life size sculpture in progress by Angela Cunningham

by Ken Salaz

by Ken Salaz

by Carla Crawford

by Carla Crawford

by Carla Crawford

by Katie Whipple

by Victoria Herrera

by Emilie Lee

by Victoria Herrera

by Chris Rigney

by Lauren Sansaricq

by Pierre Bombardier


by Justin Wood

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

painting the eye with Scott Waddell



you can follow Scott Waddell's webisode series on his blog Scott's Sketchbook and ask him questions by commenting there. Your comments are welcome here as well!

Thursday, December 9, 2010

The Animals are Coming!



The new year brings to GCA its first time ever animal drawing class! Sculpture instructor, Chris Waddell, drawing from his extensive experience with animals -- both real & artistic -- will teach ANIMAL DRAWING starting in January. This sketch class is a precursor to a five-day workshop he will teach this summer on Animal Sculpture. Weather-permitting, this class will take field trips to a local horse farm, the zoo or the Museum of Natural History. "Draw, don't feed the animals!"

Class Description:
This class will deal with learning the construction and peculiarities of animals. We will deal primarily with the structures of the dog and horse using anatomy books and drawing from a live animal. We will focus on the movement, gesture and rhythm of a chosen animal. This class is meant to expand & enrich the atelier student's exposure to natural form of life.

Tuition $135 (4 classes)
Tuesday evenings 6:30 - 9:30pm
January Sessions: January 4, 11, 18 & 25
February Sessions: February 1, 8, 15 & 22
To register, email: gcaclasses@gmail.com

Alma Schapiro Prize Winner Will St. John

The Institute of Classical Architecture & Classical America announces Will St. John as the 2011 winner of its biannual Alma Schapiro Prize. The jury concluded its lengthy deliberation of more than 25 artists’ submissions on November 23, 2010.


“The allied fine arts which enliven the Institute’s mission is well served with this Prize allowing as it does a chance for the selected artist to advance his or her career in the Eternal City in the company of other artists and scholars enrolled concurrently at the Academy,” said Institute President Paul Gunther. The endowment allowing the prize’s has been made possible by a grant from the Morris and Alma Schapiro Fund.The Alma Schapiro Prize is designed to advance the career of an artist recipient and to foster the continuity of knowledge of the classical tradition as a vital aspect of contemporary culture around the globe. The centerpiece of the prize is a three-month affiliated fellowship at the American Academy in Rome, the premier American overseas center for independent study and research in the fine arts and humanities.

Previous recipients include D. Jeffrey Mims (2009) and Michael Grimaldi (2007).

Will states on his application that his “intention is to complete a life-sized classical figure sculpture combining the knowledge acquired from the close study of nature with the artistic conventions observed in antique and Renaissance statuary.” The fellowship will allow him to directly study the conventions of classical sculpture through sustained exposure to specific masterworks.

Will St. John's "Belvedere Torso" Graphite on Paper, 2008

Will St. John's "Anna" Oil on Canvas, 11 x 14 inches, 2009


Will St. John's "Dying Man" Finished Clay, 32 inches, 2010

Will graduated with a degree in creative writing and linguistics from the New School for Social Research in New York City in 2003. His desire to learn the techniques of traditional painting and drawing brought him to Nelson Shanks’ class at the Art Students League of New York. He later moved to Philadelphia to study full-time at Studio Incamminati with Shanks. Will then went on to attend Studio Escalier in France where he studied under Tim Stotz, Michelle Tully, and Ted Seth Jacobs. Upon his return to New York, Will sought out his current teacher and mentor, Jacob Collins, and enrolled at the Water Street Atelier. Currently, Will is a graduating sculpture student at the Grand Central Academy of Art.


Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Ashley Howell & Remi Cardenas at The Guild

This Friday Dec. 10th, Ashley Howell and Remi Cardenas are having a show at The Guild Atelier in Brooklyn to share their recent narrative paintings. The show will also be a going away party, because Ashley is moving back to Kentucky, and Remi is moving back to Mexico. Both artists studied at GCA for two years before finishing up their studies with Camie Davis at The Guild. I had trouble finding any recent work online for this post, so if you want to see their new work, you'll have to go to the party yourself. Just be prepared to DANCE! (487 Union St, Brooklyn, NY, 8 PM)


Cast Painting by Ashley Howell, oil on canvas, 2010


by Remi Cardenas, oil on panel, 2010

Monday, November 29, 2010

Tony Curanaj in SCOPE Miami

Tony Curanaj has several paintings represented by Joshua Liner Gallery in this year's SCOPE Miami Art Show. This event runs from 11/30-12/5 in the Wynwood Art District in Miami, Florida. Look for booth E18 if you are there! For more information click here.


Yorick the Jester by Tony Curanaj, 16 x 14 in. Oil on panel, 2010

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Peter Trippi Lecture on 11/30

Painting in England, 1837 - 1901, a lecture by Peter Trippi
You are invited to join us for a free lecture on Nov. 30 at 4:30 PM in the cast hall. As usual, we will be feasting on our trademark lecture snack: red wine and oreo cookies.

Independent scholar Peter Trippi will survey the wide range of paintings made in England during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901). Although Britain was the world's leading superpower during this period, its art has unfairly been written off by most American scholars as provincial and backward-looking. Rather than providing an in-depth analysis of each movement active during this lively period, Trippi will explain how and why they are interconnected by highlighting their finest examples. Among the topics to be covered are Pre-Raphaelitism, the Aesthetic Movement, the Grand Manner, Landscape, Watercolors, and the varying influences from Paris.


John Everett Millais (1829-1896) Isabella 1848-49, Oil on canvas, 40 ½ x 56 ¼ in. Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool

When: November, 30, 4:30 - 5:30pm
Where: GCA Cast Hall
Lectures are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
Please RSVP to:
rsvp.gca@gmail.com

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Thanksgiving Feast and Limbo!

(There are many photos of food and limbo antics here, but please scroll down to the previous post and make sure you get to read Scott Waddell's interview!)

There are no starving artists at GCA! Today we had our annual Thanksgiving pot luck FEAST, and I have to say, everyone really put in the effort to bring in some amazing food.












Gregory Mortenson, reigning limbo champion and recent GCA graduate, returned to defend his position. Here he is starting off the limbo competition with a plate of food in hand.


Greg had some stiff competition from new students like Connor DeJong


and Ken Yarus


and our models Dani


and Nate

The crowd goes wild ...


We have some pretty bendy people here!


Liz Beard making it look easy!


Zoe Dufour sticks in until the very end...


Liz feeling the pressure as the limbo stick goes lower...


and she sticks it!


In the end it was Greg Mortenson vs. Liz Beard


And the winner is LIZ!


Nice job Greg, Liz, & Zoe!


Next was the unveiling of a very special cake. Everyone tries to get a closer look at what that image is...


Yes, that is Neal Esplin, and Bob Silverman, in a Waterhouse painting, on a cake. Neal and Bob are both finishing up their studies at GCA this month!


Neal and Bob cut their cake.


After that Ken amazed us all with some of his magic


which we never cease to be amazed by...


And then everyone tried to get back to work. Many thanks to Joy and Justine, seen here working hard in the GCA office, for organizing events like this and motivating everyone to take a break from their easels to enjoy fellowship and friendship! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!