Aaron Pavelis

Many artists struggle a lifetime to come close to the level of skill achieved by the young Richmond painter Aaron Pavelis. If talent is truly the love of a thing, then that's what is most evident in Pavelis' work. His palette is subtly beautiful, and controlled but not overly polished brushwork gently models the forms in his exquisite portraits. See more of Aaron Pavelis' work here.

Drawing the Figure with ARA Instructor Fernando Freitas

Fernando Freitas, instructor at the Academy of Realist Art in Toronto, demonstrates his approach to drawing the figure from life in his "Drawing the Figure" DVD.

Realist Artists from Richmond

The current edition of Trinity Episcopal School’s ‘Titan Trail’ features three graduates who are pursuing careers as realist artists – Aaron Pavelis ’00, Jonathan Wurdeman ’93, and Connor O’Keefe ’01. Pavelis graduated from the Florence Academy of Art and is a professional artist concentrating in landscapes and portraiture. Wurdeman and O’Connor both studied in Russia, with Wurdeman having the distinction of being the first American graduate of the Surikov Institute of Art in Moscow. Jonathan Wurdeman’s work is available through the Lazarre Gallery in Charles City, and may be seen here. Connor O’Keefe lives and paints in Richmond, and his work can be seen on his website.

"How you should endeavor to copy and draw after as few masters as possible"

This is from Artists on Art from the XIV to the XX Century.

"When you have practiced drawing for a while as I have told you above, that is, on small panels, take pains and pleasure in constantly copying the best works that you can find done by the hand of great masters . . . And as you go on from day to day, it will be unnatural if you fail to pick up something of his style and of his mien. For if you set out to copy after one master today and after another one tomorrow, you will not acquire the style of either one or the other, and you will inevitably become fantastic, because each style will fatigue your mind . . . If you imitate the forms of a single artist through constant practice, your intelligence would have to be crude indeed for you not to get some nourishment from them. Then you will find, if nature has granted you any imagination at all, that you will eventually acquire a style individual to yourself, and it cannot help being good; because your hand and your mind, being always accustomed to gathering flowers, would ill know how to pluck thorns." --Cennino Cennini, CA 1372 - ?

Cennini wrote Il Libro Dell'arte - The Craftsman's Handbook - the definitive source of information about the technique of medieval artists. It contains an early description of egg tempera painting.

Preparing a Wooden Palette

Besides portability, an advantage to using a wooden palette is the medium color value of its surface. Artist William Whitaker describes how to prepare a wooden palette here. You can purchase one of his custom-designed mahogany pallets from Real Gesso.

Dahesh Museum Catalogs

The Dahesh Museum of Art in New York City offers some extraordinarily beautiful catalogs of current and past exhibitions and shows. The catalogs, as well as the Charles Bargue drawing course, are available here.