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Nymphs and Satyr, by William Bouguereau (Detail)
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detail from St. Cecelia by J.W. Waterhouse

2010 ARC Scholarship Competition

2010 ARC Scholarship Competition: $30,000 in Grants Available

The prospectus for the 2010 ARC Scholarship Competition is now available on ARC
Deadline is May 10, 2010

Students of painting and sculpture will submit examples of paintings and sculpture rendered from life and representative of nature as reflected in figurative studies and compositions, landscapes, still lives, and portraits -- work that that seeks to capture a fully recognizable likeness of the model.
Scholarships are awarded solely on the basis of merit. There is no application fee.

Applications and required supporting material must be received by May 10, 2010 for scholarships awarded for the fall 2010 term.

Click here for more information and the 2010 ARC Scholarship Prospectus

Major Articles Featuring ARC Living Master™ Mario Robinson



I have for several years now considered Mario Robinson to be one of the most talented living artists, who also happens to be a well-recognized ARC Living Master™.

His paintings capture much of the emotional essence of black America, and he does so with a singular directness which compels empathy in his viewers for the sadness, joy, or psychic torment in nearly every one of his subjects. If you ever have the chance to experience a grouping of his works together, you’re likely to see any number of art loving visitors mesmerized by one powerful composition after another….riveted by this artist's rare and exceptional talent for subtle nuanced dramatic intensity in scenes from everyday life. The simpler his composition the more complex the emotions.

Apparently a growing following for his work has been mounting, recently culminating in major articles in The Watercolor Artist Magazine and a second recent interview by Didi Menendez, the editor of Poets and Artists Magazine
[Click here to read the interview].


--ARC Chairman, Fred Ross


The Watercolor Artist magazine, which features the work of Mario Robinson is on newsstands now. Over the years, Mr. Robinson has taken part in several interviews. This particular article is unique, whereas it breaks down his work day and documents his process with corresponding photographs. Written by the features editor, Sarah A. Strickley, the result is an in-depth and well written article. To read an excerpt from Sarah's blog, with "5 Quick Tips from Mario Robinson", click here.

posted Wednesday, March 03, 2010

LAAFA Registration: Sessions Classes Start April 5, 2010

ARC Approved LAAFA is now accepting applications for their Fall Full-time Program
Classes start October 4, 2010
LAAFA offers a realist Full-time program to Atelier students.
Now, in addition to the complete linear progression of classes provided in the regular curriculum for Atelier students, all Full-time students also have unlimited access to all LAAFA sessions classes and uninstructed workshops.
Virtual Tour: www.laafa.org/virtualtour/

Sessions Part-time Spring Program
Classes start April 5, 2010
LAAFA invites you to our Spring Open House on March 20th, 2010 from 11am - 4pm. Participate in our Free demos, lectures & workshop. View our Spring Brochure as we are offering a wide array of classes focusing on the traditional and conceptual side of art making. Plus, this quarter is our New 10-Week Unlimited Uninstructed Workshop Pass offered 6 days a week for only $170.00!
Visit the LAAFA Website: www.laafa.org

posted Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Damien Bartoli (1947-2009)

The Art Renewal Center® has some extremely sad news to report. Damien Bartoli, the Bouguereau biographer, who worked with ARC Chairman, Fred Ross M.A. and Dr. Vern Swanson to produce the first comprehensive Catalogue Raisonné on William Bouguereau passed away in mid-December.

Mr. Bartoli worked tirelessly on the Bouguereau Catalogue Raisonné project from the very beginning until last July, when content for the 30-year effort was handed over to our co publisher for final layout and printing.

He continued to work with Mr. Ross on other projects* until the day before he died, apparently from a heart attack while driving from Paris to Belgium.

We have lost a great friend and colleague. Our hearts go out to his wife, Martine and their two children, Xavier and Laetitia.

Sadly, as this publication is about to be realized, he will never see the fruits of his life's most important work.
We are all heart broken beyond words.

--ARC Chairman, Fred Ross


*Their latest collaboration: an in-depth analysis of Bouguereau's drawings and studies as well as the extended legacy of his students who became famous in their own right. (see: list of Bouguereau's students in the Bouguereau gallery ).

posted Sunday, February 28, 2010

Improved Access to Recent Updates

You may have already noticed a few improvements in the way this website shows new updates. First, in the right column (you have to scroll down a bit to see it) there's a list of the new artworks, articles, ARChive posts, etc. for a quick check. We also have a page that shows the latest artworks added to the site available at http://www.artrenewal.org/pages/recentchanges.php which shows the newest works in thumbnail form for easy browsing. Give it a try and let us know how you like it!

posted Sunday, February 28, 2010

The Dahesh Museum Presents "Becoming an Artist: The Academy in 19th-Century France"


presents
Becoming an Artist: The Academy in 19th-Century France
February 26 - April 29, 2010   Monday through Saturday, 11-6
PALITZ GALLERY
Lubin House
11 East 61st Street
New York City
Admission is Free
For more information: www.daheshmuseum.org

The exhibition highlights the rigorous technical training and broad-based curriculum that attracted students from France and abroad to the highly selective French Academy.
The exacting system held competitions that rewarded excellence, created a hierarchy of preferred subject matter and allowed an unexpected variety of artistic expression. More than anything, the Academy was a crucial step to a successful career.

The Water Girl, 1885
by William Adolphe Bouguereau

posted Monday, February 22, 2010

New Artworks for the ARC Living Masters Gallery for ARC Living Artist™ Mark Lovett

Four new images have been added to the gallery of ARC Living Artist™, Mark Lovett.

Click here to visit the Mark Lovett gallery.
ARC Living Artist Mark Lovett
Field of Gold
by Mark Lovett

posted Friday, February 19, 2010

February Studio Talk at GCA: Hamlet's Classicism

FEBRUARY STUDIO TALK at ARC Approved™ Grand Central Academy :

Hamlet's Classicism

When: Tuesday, February 23
Where: GCA Cast Hall, 6th Floor
20 West 44th Street
New York, NY 10036 (212) 730-9646
Time: 4:00 - 5:30pm
Free Admission / Space is limited!

Rufus Collins, a classically-trained New York actor who studied literature at Columbia College and acting in London at the Central School of Speech and Drama, will discuss Hamlet's interest in the ancient world and his classical orientation, particularly as it is expressed at the arrival of a troupe of itinerant actors in Act II, scene 2.

posted Thursday, February 18, 2010

"This website is like a santuary for me."

This website is like a sanctuary for me. It keeps me connected to the thoughts of rational thinking people. I'm a life long artist. My father started me off drawing at a very young age. Even in kindergarten the talent was recognized and I received attention for it. Now that I'm 51 yrs old I truly appreciate the role art has been in my life. I've studied Realism at the Atelier in Oakland ,CA. which is run by Mr David Hardy. I thank God I found that place!!! Though my studies there have ended I still feel such a part of that studio. I could probably use another couple of years under his tutalege,we'll see. This website helps me to stay the course. To hold up quality over quantity. To always give my best and to thirst for the knowledge to keep improving.
Its like what President Kennedy said about going to the moon. We do it not because its easy but because it is hard.
Ignacio Sandoval


David Hardy is an ARC Living Master™ and director of ARC Approved™Atelier School of Classical Realism in Oakland, California

posted Thursday, February 18, 2010

Academy of Realist Art Expands in North America and Europe

ARC Approved™ Academy of Realist Art is expanding its reach in North America and Europe in the coming months. While details won't be available until the official announcements are made, plans are in the works for ARA – with the enthusiastic support of local government agencies - to open a new school in a European resort location as early as June 2010.
Further:
ARA Europe
The new ARA building in Europe
• ARA is also in the very early stages of considering a new site in the UK in response to popular demand.
• ARA Boston www.academyofrealistartboston.com is undergoing some major upgrades and grooming new instuctors to accommodate its growing student population and expanding workshop calendar schedule.
• Monart Art School, in Ottowa will now be home to an extended ARA curriculum, and will feature regularly scheduled workshops with senior ARA instructors.
Check the ARA website for updates at: www.academyofrealistart.com or email: info@academyofrealistart.com

posted Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Grand Central Academy June Classical Figure Sculpture Competition

Announcing ARC Approved™
Grand Central Academy's 3rd Annual Classical Figure Sculpture Competition
June 7-11, 2010
Applications due April 1

The week-long schedule of sculpting and free public events will encourage classical figurative sculpture and bring together exceptionally talented artists, students, teachers and the public for dialogue review.
Applications are due Thursday, April 1, 2010 and are available for download here. For questions, please contact GCAsculpturecompetition@gmail.com .

posted Friday, February 12, 2010

ARA Alumni Receives Prestigious Vatican Commission

Former ARC Approved™ Academy of Realist Art student and portrait specialist Will Nathans recently completed a portrait commission for the Order of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher in Vatican City.

The portrait will be kept in the Palazzo della Rovere in Vatican City where His Eminence is stationed.

"ARA training has empowered me artistically, for which I will be always grateful."
--Will Nathans

Vatican Commission
His Eminence Cardinal Foley
by Will Nathans

posted Friday, February 12, 2010

Murdoch Studio Figure Painting Workshop in historic Bucks County, PA

ARC Approved™ Murdoch Studio and Art School

3 DAY FIGURE PAINTING IN OIL WORKSHOP
March 5-7, 2010(Friday- Sunday) 9am-4m
Learn to paint realistic flesh tones with a strong emphasis on accurate drawing and anatomy.

Location: The Stone Ridge Farm, a refurbished farm that used to belong to no less than the Pulitzer Prize winning writer Pearl S. Buck, now a working studio and lodging.

Click here for Class information.

posted Thursday, February 11, 2010

LAAFA Accepting Instructors Applications

ARC Approved LAAFA (Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art) is currently looking for talented instructors in figurative painting, drawing, and/or composition and color theory to become a part of our faculty. We are looking for open-minded artists who have a completely solid understanding of figurative form, but who value diversity and the modern art tradition as well.
LAAFA's foundation comes from a strong base in fundamental realism, embodied in the “Academy” movement of Europe and coupled with the modern “traditional” figurative movement in America. We balance the academic approach with a more realistic approach to figurative study that combines anatomy, gesture, form, and design with the comparative method.
Our LAAFA/Atelier curriculum represents a "contemporary dialogue with classical sources".In fact, as LAAFA develops toward BFA accreditation, special efforts will be made to develop general education courses which reflect that same respect for classical sources. Studio classes will maintain the tradition of the past, with an eye on the present. Our graduates will have a strong foundation of classical drawing and painting, tempered with a realization that we live in a progressive age where art making is more than just simple representation, it is a source of social change and awareness.
If you would like to start a discussion with LAAFA, please send a CV to us in care of Director, Cindy Jackson.

posted Friday, February 05, 2010

McCormack Studios 2010 Workshops Schedule Available

The 2010 schedule for workshops held in the McCormack Studios is now posted.

The McCormack Studios, founded by ARC Master™ Paul McCormack, are housed in the former Historic Dutchess/Garner Print Works building in the Market Street Industrial Park of Wappingers Falls, NY.

Visit the workshop page of the McCormack Studios website for details and to reserve your spot.
Painting by Paul McCormack
Daughter of Hope
by Paul McCormack

posted Friday, February 05, 2010

Valentine' Day Specials from ARC Store to Benefit Art Renewal Center®


VALENTINE'S DAY SPECIAL ON ARC'S
MOST ROMANTIC FINE ART PRINTS
On Special: 15% OFF
Springtime by Pierre-Auguste Cot and
Ravissement of Psyche by William Adolphe Bouguereau



Springtime
by Pierre-Auguste Cot



Ravissement de Psyche
by William Adolphe Bouguereau
In the Coupon Box at checkout, enter romanticprints for 15% off these romantic favorites or ValentinesDay2010 for 10% off your own personal favorite or ARC books, DVDs and catalogues.
*Offer expires March 15; Excludes preorders for the Catalogue Raisonné on William Bouguereau

posted Friday, February 05, 2010

ARC Approved™ LAAFA Workshops

5-Day Figure Workshop
Instructor: Steve Huston
Wed-Sun, Mar. 24-28, 2010, 10am-5pm

2-Days of Drawing and 3-Days of Painting the figure

1-Day Color Concepts for Painters Workshop
Instructor: Nathan Fowkes
Saturday, February 27th, 2010, 10am-6pm

3-Day Composition Workshop
Instructor: Marshall Vandruff
Fri-Sun March 19th-21st, 2010
.

ARC Approved Ateliers
Day Laborers
by Steve Huston
Register at: www.laafa.org or call 818-708-9232 for more details or to register.

posted Friday, February 05, 2010

Guess the Artist Competition Has a Winner!

The winner of our $1,000 competition is Joshua LaRock a former winner of an ARC Scholarship and a past student of the Water Street Atelier, an ARC Approved Atelier school. He happened to have noticed this very painting being advertized for sale on the website of Rehs Gallery and was the first of 3 people who got it right out of a few hundred who tried.

Orientale a La Grenade by William Bouguereau detail of Orientale a La Grenade by William Bouguereau


"The reason I ran this competition is because this was painted by William Bouguereau in 1875 right at the beginning of the period of Impressionism's supposed birth.
This painting singlehandedly disproves the "brilliant originality" of Impressionist techniques and their source as reported in most Modernist art history text books from the past 80 years."'
CLICK HERE for more information and to read the full article by ARC Chairman, Fred Ross

posted Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Murdoch Art Studio and School is now ARC Approved™

Art Renewal Center® is pleased to announce that Murdoch Art Studio and School located in Bucks County, Pennsylvania is now ARC Approved™ and will be listed with our ARC Approved Ateliers and Schools as well as on the ARC Atelier Map.
Click here to visit the Murdoch Art Studio and School Gallery on ARC.
Drawing by John Murcoch
Drawing of Robert
by John Murdoch

posted Tuesday, January 05, 2010

ARC Has a New Look


We are pleased to announce that we have completed a complete refurbishment of the ARC website. While a lot of it looks just the same as before, we have touched every page and every artwork and artist in the database and polished everything up a little bit. There are a lot of new things in place already and a whole lot of new features coming in the near future too. Here's a list of a few of the things you might notice right away:


  • The column of artworks on the right edge of most ARC pages will show much more interesting artworks and much more commonly ones relevant to whatever you are looking for. You don't need to do anything special to get them, just look and enjoy.

  • A new menu on every page with a reorganized and shorter list of options everywhere to help you find what you are looking for.

  • A new search field at the top of most windows (in the blue marble bar) that will allow you to immediately search not only for artists and artwork titles as you could before, but also for articles, ARChive postings, authors, ateliers, and more.

  • A new site map page that gives you a detailed view of everything on the site.

  • A new articles page showing the articles in various orders.

  • An improved search mechanism in the ARC Museum that will show a better selection of artist names when you don't quite remember how to spell an artist's name and better searching for artworks by title too.

  • We have added thousands of historical relationships between the artists in the ARC museum so that it is easier than ever to see who was who else's cousin, student, patron, or lover. Just look on the artist's pages in the museum.

As with any major project like this there are bound to be a few glitches, so if you see anything strange don't be shy about reporting it to us. Just send an email to webmaster@artrenewal.org and we'll get right on it. Please remember to send the exact URL where they error occurred and any error messages that might have appeared. If you have any other feedback or suggestions we would love to hear from you!';

posted Wednesday, December 16, 2009

ARC Approved™ Waichulis Studio Show with Current and Former Apprentices


ARC Living Master™ Anthony Waichulis, proudly presents artwork from current and former apprentices of ARC Approved™ Waichulis Studio:
Capturing Realism 2009

7 November – 19 December 2009
Pauly Friedman Art Gallery-Misericordia University
301 Lake Street. Dallas,PA 18612

posted Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Southern Atelier in Sarasota Florida

ARC Approved™ Southern Atelier in Sarasota, Florida survived a devastating fire this fall.
Director Charles Miano rose to the challenge by continuing studies en plein air.
Click here to make a donation to the Southern Atelier, a 501c3 nonprofit organization.

posted Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Max Ginsburg Workshop at ARC Approved™ LAAFA

Max Ginsburg, an ARC Salon™ Finalist and winner of the Chairman's Choice award in the 2008-09 ARC Salon for his Tire Swing, will be at ARC Approved™ LAAFA:
Intensive 5-Day Workshop
January 20-24th, 2010
10am-5pm
Click here for more information
Max Ginsburg
Details of Paintings byMax Ginsburg

posted Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Wellfire Publications Joins ARC For the Holidays

This Season The Art Renewal Center® joins Wellfire Publications in offering this Holiday Special:

Every purchase of either the Seeds of the Pomegranate or Light of Lucinda by Sherry Ross published by Wellfire Publications or an ARC Salon Catalogue, the popular annual Art Renewal Center® publication of ARC Salon™ Winners and Finalists, will come with a $10 coupon which can be used on any order from the ARC Store of $50 or more.

posted Wednesday, November 11, 2009

2009 ARC Scholarship Winners Announced



Students Receive $30,000 in Scholarships and Five Purchase Awards

The Art Renewal Center® is very pleased to announce the winners of the 2009 Annual Scholarship Competition. Now in its ninth year, the ARC Scholarship program has helped students from all over the world continue their studies at ARC Approved™ Ateliers and Schools. With this year's scholarships of $30,000 and over $150,000 awarded to date, the Art Renewal Center® strives to ensure that current and future generations of artists receive proper instruction in the traditional and classical methods of representational art.




Dancer
by Amelia Landes Taylor
2nd Place Winner

Click here for the 2009 ARC Scholarship Winners.
Visit the ARC Approved™ Atelier Galleries and Worldwide ARC Atelier Map

posted Wednesday, November 11, 2009

A Shot in the Arm

Your site is AWESOME! Such a shot in the arm for those of us who are excited to see the resurgence of Classical Realism.

Thanks!

Joan Landes

http://joanlandes.wordpress.com/

posted Wednesday, October 28, 2009

ARC Salon™ Catalogues Available as a Set

ARC Salon Competition

All four ARC Salon™ Catalogues are now available as a set.
Click here to take advantage of this opportunity to purchase these beautiful full-color exhibition books of all the Winners and Finalists from the 2008-09, 2007, 2006 and 2005 International ARC Salon™ Competitions.

posted Monday, October 19, 2009

New Article by ARC Master Stephen Gjertson: Classical Realism

ARC Living Master™ Stephen Gjertson defines the term and origins of Classical Realism, a movement which continues today.


Click Here to read the article:
Classical Realism

by Stephen Gjertson


Click Here to Order
the Richard Lack biography by Stephen Gjertson

posted Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Richard Lack Public Memorial

Public Tribute, Memorial Service and Exhibition:

Sunday, November 1, 2009
2:00 to 5:00 p.m.
The Landscape Arboretum
3675 Arboretum Drive
Chaska, Minnesota 55318
952-443-1400

"Richard F. Lack is one of the most significant artists of the second half of the 20th century. While the non-traditional artistic endeavors of his contemporaries drew attention from the artistic and public press, Lack passionately pursued his career within the great tradition of Western art. His work exhibits to a high degree those qualities that characterize notable works of the past: sensitive rendering of the phenomena of the visible world, balanced and harmonious composition and skillful craftsmanship. Lack spent his lifetime endeavoring to achieve these qualities in his work. In the process he created an art of immense richness and beauty.

Richard Lack was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 26, 1928..."
Click here to read the rest of this tribute to Richard F. Lack by Stephen Gjertson, author of: Richard F. Lack: An American Master.

posted Tuesday, October 06, 2009

ARC Living Masters Ted Seth Jacobs and Dan Thompson at BACAA

Ted Seth Jacobs at BACAA
Danae by Ted Seth Jacobs
Restructured Realism with ARC Living Master™ Ted Seth Jacobs
ARC Approved™ Atelier: BAACA 30 minutes south of San Francisco
November 9–December 18, 2009   January 4-Feb 12. 2010
Click here to sign up for: Two Six week or One 3 Month program.
ARC Living Master™Dan Thompson Figure Drawing Workshop
October 26 - October30, 2009   Click here to sign up.

posted Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Max Ginsburg Workshop at Salmagundi Club

Max Ginsburg, a finalist and winner of the Chairman's Choice award in the 2008-09 ARC Salon for his Tire Swing will be holding a workshop at the Salmagundi Club this month.
"Painting a Head From Life" Workshop with Max Ginsburg
October 24-25     9:30 - 4:00
Salmagundi Club  47 5th Avenue  NYC
212-255-7740
Max Ginsburg

posted Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Technical Column by ARC Master™ Virgil Elliott

ARC Master Virgil Elliot has updated his Technical Column on ARC.
" Since I wrote my previous technical column, several important discoveries have been made that serious oil painters should know about. "
Click here for this new information.

Virgil Elliott is author of:
Traditional Oil Painting
Advanced Techniques and Concepts from the Renaissance to the Present

Traditional Oil Painting by Virgil Elliot
"Traditional Oil Painting"
by Virgil Elliot
Click Here to order yours now.

posted Monday, October 05, 2009

Richard F. Lack Has Passed Away

Thoughts on Richard Lack

I'm so very sad to hear this.

Richard more than any other single artist and teacher picked up the torch when Ives Gammell passed away in 1981.

I know the entire community of traditional and classically trained artists will mourn his passing.

It's so ironic that only a few days before Richard Lack passed away, (Lack was Ives Gammell's most influential student), I just discovered the letter Ives Gammell sent to me in 1981 in which he demonstrated his support for the programs and projects we were working on that lead to the Art Renewal Center®.
- ARC Chairman, Fred Ross

Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness regarding the legacy of Richard Lack. Lack along with R H Ives Gammell gave themselves so totally to the cause of reestablishing the very high standards of painting that today we are seeing the results of this huge undertaking. They trained only a handfull of students at a time for several years and began from the very beginning with the study of antique casts to figure drawing and still life, never to rush ahead, until each were mastered sufficiently. They never compromised in the wake of contemporary critics with modernist viewpoints where discipline or standards mattered little.

His leadership cannot be overstated. Even as students would leave and move along in their own careers Lack once again took up the challenge of organizing the artists into a cohesive body
and eventually coigned the tag 'Classical Realism'. His personal charm and dedication molded the group for years to follow, bringing together talented people of many other areas to organize museum and gallery shows and publish written material in newsletters and books. He took great pride in the accomplishments of his many students and the mutual respect of the artists that today enjoy the benefits of his labors.

Lastly, along with these important efforts by Richard Lack and R H Ives Gammell, it took the business savvy of Fred Ross and his own tireless efforts, as a collector and champion of bringing back
recognition of academic painting, to help reshape a renewed interest in these high standards of painting. His own personal interest in making sure art of such great painters like Bouguereau, Gerome, Lefebvre and many others of the 19th century never go unnoticed again. To this end Fred Ross has given much needed support and encouragement through ARC. where several of Richard Lack's former pupils shine as artists within a legacy.

Richard Lack will be greatly missed. His legacy and example will be an inspiration for all of us.

Allan

(ARC Living Master, Allan Banks)

About Richard Lack:

Richard Lack was a man of courage willing to stand up and be counted during the height of academic and critical pressures condemning realism. He created the name Classical Realism. This name has been gratefully taken up and proudly carried forth by those of us trying to keep the flame of realism ever brighter. Richard Lack gathered up almost dying embers so that we had access to blowing our creativity upon them and nurturing them back into accessible brilliance. Thank you, Richard Lack.

David Hardy

(ARC Living Master)

posted Monday, October 05, 2009

Richard Lack Biography by Stephen Gjertson


Richard F. Lack passed away on September 22, 2009. The Art Renewal Center® has decided to make the Richard Lack biography by ARC Master Stephen Gjertson available through the ARC Store for those who would like to know more about this highly influencial artist/teacher.

Click Here to Order

posted Thursday, October 01, 2009

Lost Ives Gammell Letter Found

"It’s so ironic that only a few days before Richard Lack passed away, (Lack was Ives Gammell’s most influential student), I just discovered the letter Ives Gammell sent to me in 1981 in which he demonstrated his support for the programs and projects we were working on that lead to the Art Renewal center."

--Fred Ross from his article about the rediscovery of the lost letter from Ives Gammell

Click here to read the rest of the article and see the letter.

posted Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Richard Lack Obituary

Richard Lack founded Classical Realist style
MARY ABBE, Star Tribune

Twin Cities artist Richard F. Lack, who launched a national renaissance in traditional drawing and painting, died Tuesday at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park from complications due to pneumonia. He was 81 and lived in Minnetonka.

The death was announced Wednesday by family members.

Known for his warm, dignified portraits, floral still lifes and landscapes, Lack was a champion of old-school artistic values -- illusionistic perspective, accurate modeling and naturalistic color -- at a time when avant-garde iconoclasm dominated the art world.

His portrait commissions included six members of the Kennedy family, Minnesota governors Wendell Anderson and Albert Quie, as well as prominent Minneapolis businessmen and educators. One of his most enjoyable commissions came in 1989 from the future Earl of Wilmot, an Englishman who provided Lack and his wife, Katherine, with a chauffeur and lodging for two months in the Wilmots' London townhouse while Lack painted Diana, the earl's young wife.

"At first I was a little uneasy," Lack told his biographer, because Wilmot ancestors had been painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir Godfrey Kneller, two of the greatest portraitists of the 18th century. But the portrait was a success and "we were quite pampered," he said.

In the Twin Cities, he is best known as the founder of Atelier Lack, a studio-school he ran in the Hennepin-Lake neighborhood from 1969 until his retirement in 1992. Modeled on 19th-century French academic principles combined with Boston-style impressionism, the school offers a four-year program of day and evening classes in figure studies, portraiture, color theory and anatomy. It is now run by two former pupils who renamed it the Atelier and moved it to northeast Minneapolis.

"He was a fantastic teacher who gave us the eyes to see and the knowledge, tools and skills to be professional artists," said Stephen Gjertson, a former pupil who taught at Atelier Lack for 16 years and wrote Lack's 2001 biography.

Born March 26, 1928, in Minneapolis, Lack graduated from Roosevelt High School. He studied briefly at the Minneapolis School of Art, now the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, before heading to New York and then Boston in search of more traditional instruction. From 1950 to 1956 he studied with R. H. Ives Gammell, a legendary Boston art educator. During that period he also spent two years in the U.S. Army and met his future wife, Katherine Vietorisz, a Hungarian-born graphic designer and jewelry maker.

Lack exhibited widely throughout the United States, including at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts in 1990 and the Maryhill Museum of Art in Goldendale, Wash., which staged a retrospective in 1988. A prolific writer of reviews and instructional essays, he coined the term "Classical Realism" in 1982 to differentiate his approach from other styles, and helped found the American Society of Classical Realism to further the cause.

His last exhibition, at the Bloomington Art Center in January, included a series of monumental imaginative paintings on Jungian themes that he had worked on for more than 20 years. "He was a seminal force in the revival of interest in academic art, and his paintings have such personal meaning that they will have a lasting influence for years to come," said Gabe Weisberg, a University of Minnesota art history professor.

Besides his wife and daughter, Lack is survived by sons Michael and Peter. Memorial service arrangements are pending.

posted Monday, September 28, 2009

Grand Central Academy Fall Classes


Visit grandcentralacademy.classicist.org/
For Details of Fall Classes at
ARC Approved Grand Central Academy in NYC.

posted Monday, September 28, 2009

LAAFA Registration: Classes Start January 11, 2010

ARC Approved LAAFA is now accepting applications for their Winter Atelier Program
Classes start January 11th, 2010.
LAAFA offers a realist diploma program to Atelier students.
Now, in addition to the complete linear progression of classes provided in the regular curriculum for Atelier students, all Atelier students also have unlimited access to all LAAFA sessions classes and workshops.
The student may customize the program to his/her own interests and artistic goals.
Visit the LAAFA Website: www.laafa.org

LAAFA curriculum

posted Monday, September 28, 2009

Music Renewal?

Dear Mr Ross,

I wanted to write to thank you for your website, Art Renewal Center. I have long been disappointed in much contemporary art, and have always been attracted to the beauty of the old masters (and now, through your website, learned of living ones!). I am not a visual artist, however, but a musical one. Reading your articles, I felt very much at home as, similarly, much contemporary 'classical' music has been a let-down, to say the least. Indeed, as a composer, I have felt continual pressure not to write tonal music, but to go the atonal route of modern composers. While I do not discount all this music, and have come to see more value in it than I did, say, 10 years ago as an undergraduate student, my masters will always be Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Mozart, and many others; craftsmen in their field: not simply pseudo-artists trying to do something weird or new for weirdness or newness' sake.

Your site has encouraged me to continue to compose as I see fit, and has reminded me that it is perfectly OK to love beautiful art and beautiful music.

Sincerely,

Stephen Pompa

posted Sunday, August 16, 2009

The Committee to Write the Catalogue Raisonne on William Bouguereau has finished its work.

Catalogue Raisonne Update: The Committee to Write the Catalogue Raisonne on William Bouguereau 1825-1905 has completed its work; the committee will accept no further additions to the publication.

This Herculean effort spanning 30 years was undertaken by a determined team of 19th Century Art experts, set to fill the void of information on Bouguereau, one of history’s greatest masters.

The contents are now in the publisher's hands. The Antique Collector's Club will be giving us the release date as soon as possible. The announcement will be forthcoming.

The Catalogue Raisonne which is due to be jointly published by Art Renewal Center® and the Antique Collectors Club, includes information on all of William Bouguereau's 826 known paintings, as well as the entire 600 page biography written by Damien Bartoli, along with an introduction by Fred Ross, ARC Chairman and President of the Bouguereau Committee.

You may still pre order a Bouguereau Catalogue Raisonne or pay the balance on your deposit at ARC Store, the e-commerce site for Art Renewal Center, a 501c3 Educational Foundation.
Click here for articles and more information on William Bouguereau.

posted Monday, July 27, 2009

ARC Approved BACAA Drawing and Painting Workshop

ARC Approved Atelier™ Bay Area Classical Artist Atelier is very proud to announce:
Jon deMartin: Life drawing from the figure and the head
August 31-September 4, 2009
Application for Jon deMartin Life Drawing Workshop
Application for Michael Grimaldi Figure Painting Workshop 8/17-28/09
Click here for more information about BACAA.

BACAA Workshop
Julie Reclining
by Jon deMartin

posted Monday, July 27, 2009

New Joaquin Sorolla y Batista Exhibition Catalog

Joaquin Sorolla y Batista Exhibition Catalog
A new 536 - page hardcover catalog has been published and printed in Spain for the opening of the Sorolla Exhibition at the Prado May 26, 2009.

This new volume is rendered with the highest quality materials in both printing and binding. The English edition, 9 1/2" x 12" also includes 300 images in full color. Sorolla's daughter Maria graces the dust jacket.

The price is $119, plus USA shipping.

Click here to order.


posted Monday, July 27, 2009

Call for Entries: International 2009/2010 ARC Salon 6th Annual Competition

Call for Entries
The Art Renewal Center's
International 2009/2010 ARC Salon™

Win International Recognition Overnight
Have your work seen by 5.5 Million Yearly Visitors

More than $48,000 in Awards
Now with more Awards and the newly added Category of Animal Art
Award Winners and Finalists will be featured on the
Art Renewal Center website and in our full color catalogue.

Awards

Best in Show: $10,000 cash award plus gallery space in the Museum section of the ARC’s website. Gallery space will include the artist’s biographical information accompanied by 1 to 5 web pages of the artist’s finest works. The winner will also gain automatic acceptance as an ARC Approved Artist with exemption from the application process and $150 application fee..

The William Bouguereau Award - Emotion, Theme, and the Figure: $3,000

6 First Place Awards: $2,500 awarded in each category
6 Second Place Awards: $1,000 awarded in each category
6 Third Place Awards: $500 awarded in each category

Chairman's Choice Award: 2 Awarded at $500 each

ARC Staff Award: 4 Awarded at $100 each

Minimum of $10,000 in Purchase Awards
Works do not have to be for sale to be eligible for the competition. Purchase awards will be chosen from the finalists by our four judges and awarded at the sole discretion of the ARC's Chairman, Fred Ross.

30 Honorable Mentions: Award winners will receive an Award Certificate and have their winning artwork accompanied by their name displayed on the ARC website.

Top 100 Finalists will have their entry accompanied by their name displayed on the ARC website and will also be featured in the 2009/2010 ARC Salon™ Catalog.

You can download entry forms in either PDF or Microsoft Word format.

For more details click here for the ARC Salon Prospectus section.

Entry Deadline: Entries must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2009

posted Thursday, July 23, 2009

"Traditional Oil Painting" by Virgil Elliott is now available through ARC

Art Renewal Center® is pleased to offer:

"Traditional Oil Painting"
Advanced Techniques and Concepts from the Renaissance to the Present

by ARC Living Master™ Virgil Elliott.
Click Here to order yours now.

Traditional Oil Painting by Virgil Elliot

posted Thursday, July 23, 2009

ARC Museum: 10 New Images Added

Ten new works of art have been added to the ARC Museum so far today, including pieces by the following artists:

Frederick Hendrik Kaemmerer
Henriette Ronner-Knip
Ferdinand Carl Sierig
Jan Zoetelief Tromp
Jacobus Van Der Stok
Salomon Leonardus Verveer
Jan Hendrik Weissenbruch
George Pieter Westenberg

More new works of art are scheduled to be added each day this week. Be sure to check back soon.

posted Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Urban Larsson is now an ARC Living Artist™


Urban Larsson studied Art History at the University of Stockholm, Architecture at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, then Drawing and Painting in Florence, Italy, at the Studio Cecil & Graves. After his studies in Florence, he moved to Amsterdam to settle as a painter. His portraits are painted only from life through sittings and in a tradition that has evolved over more than four centuries – sight-size.

Click here
to view the Urban Larsson Gallery.
Urban Larsson is an ARC Living Artist™
Spanish Woman
by Urban Larson

posted Wednesday, July 22, 2009

ARC Museum: 14 New Images Added

Fourteen new works of art have been added to the ARC Museum so far today, including pieces by the following artists:

Edward Burne-Jones
William Callow
James Charles
Sir George Clausen
Walter Crane
Myles Birket Foster, R.W.S.
Frederick Daniel Hardy
Henry Moore
Charles Rossiter
John William Waterhouse

More new works of art are scheduled to be added today.

This post will be updated throughout the day as more images are made available, so check back soon!

posted Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Frank Mason Has Passed Away

Frank Mason, legendary artist and instructor passed away on the morning of June 16th, 2009. The funeral service was held at Grace Church in New York on Saturday, June 27th.

Frank was an ARC Living Master™ and has continuously placed in the International ARC Salon.

All of us here at ARC extend our sincerest condolences to Ann Mason and their family.

For more information about the life and work of Frank Mason click here.


Amy by Frank Mason
Amy
by Frank Mason

posted Tuesday, July 21, 2009

ARC Museum: 12 New Images Added

Twelve new works of art have been added to the ARC Museum so far today, including pieces by the following artists:

Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovsky
Nikolai Bogdanoff-Bjelski
Isaak Izrailevich Brodsky
Sir William Russell Flint
Konstantin Yakovlevich Kryzhitsky
Boris Mikhailovich Kustodiev
Vladimir Egorovich Makovsky
Mikhail Vasilievich Nesterov
Vladmir Donatovitch Orlovsky
Vasily Dmitrievich Polenov


More new works of art are scheduled to be added today.

This post will be updated throughout the day as more images are made available, so check back soon!

posted Saturday, July 18, 2009

ARC Museum: 10 New Images Added

Ten new works of art have been added to the ARC Museum today, including pieces by the following artists:

Marcel Brunery
Alexei Alexeivich Harlamoff (3 Pieces)
Marianus Adrianus Koekkoek
Charles Henri Joseph Leickert
Emile Munier
Mihály Munkácsy
Bernard Jean Corneille Pothast
Emilie Preyer

posted Wednesday, July 15, 2009

ARC Museum: 10 New Images Added

Ten new works of art have been added to the ARC Museum today, including pieces by the following artists:

Alfred de Breanski Snr
Sir Gerald Kelly
Anna Lea Merritt
Sir Alfred James Munnings
Archibald Thorburn
Claude Joseph Bail
Jean Béraud
Camille Cabaillot Lassalle
Cecil Kennedy
Raffaelo Sorbi

posted Tuesday, July 14, 2009



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August Andreas Jerndorff: Faraway Thoughts
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Christian Peder Morch Zacho: A Stream In The Woods
Christian Peder Morch Zacho: Landscape with Trees
Anders Monsen Askevold: A Village by a Fjord
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