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Sunset Dandelions inspired by Monet
“My only merit lies in having painted directly in front of nature, seeking to render my impressions of the most fleeting effects.” –Claude Monet Claude Monet was born in Paris, France in 1840. When he was young he did not like being confined to a classroom and was more interested in being outside. He filled […]
Jack Bush – Abstractions
““Your best work, when you do it, will always upset the general public – they’re always a few years behind you.” -Jack Bush Jack Bush was born in Toronto on March 20th, 1909. His youth was spent in Montreal, and he studied at the Royal Canadian Academy. During the 1930s he ran a commercial art business […]
Fernand Leger – Faces
“Man needs colour to live; it’s just as necessary an element as fire and water.” – Fernand Leger Fernand Léger was born at Argentan, France, on 4 February 1881. Regarded as the forerunner of the up and coming Pop Art style, Fernand Leger was a French painter, sculptor and filmmaker, working in his own form of […]
Valentine’s Day Inspiration – All You Need Is Love
“All you need is love All you need is love All you need is love, love Love is all you need” – Paul McCartney and John Lennon Valentine’s Day inspired our heart focussed multi-media pieces. There was a lot of humming and singing in our classrooms as we used liquid watercolours, oil pastels, acrylic paint […]
John Howe and Alan Lee – Dragon Inspiration
John Howe was born in 1957 in Vancouver, and grew up in British Columbia He first studied in Strasbourg, France, at the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs . He is a book illustrator who became world famous for his work as a conceptual artist for the movie adaptation of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings triliogy. Alan Lee was […]
Frank Johnston – Winter Trees
. . higher ever higher we rose till the land below became a beautiful rug, with a somewhat geometric design, of all colours, broken by light ribbons, that were the main highways.” – Frank Johnston Frank (Franz) Johnston was born in Toronto on June 19, 1888. Right out of high school he began work as […]
Sharon Marston – Moon Shadows
Sharon Marcella Marston is a living artist who grew up in New England. She graduated from Maine College of Art in Portland in 1995, and has been creating art for over 30 years. Her work is not meant to be complicated, the mood is easily discerned. In today’s class, students looked at the principle of art: […]
Ivan Aivazovsky – Icebergs
Ivan Aivazovsky was a Russian Romantic painter from Crimea. He is considered to be one of the greatest marine artists in history. During his sixty-year career he created approximately 6,000 paintings, making him one of the most prolific artists of his time. The majority of his paintings are seascapes, but he often depicted battle scenes, Armenian themes, and portraiture. […]
Forest Energy
“Art-making is a process of experimentation.” -Lisa Congdon Oakland, California based artist, Lisa Congdon inspired our energetic forest scenes. Lisa Congdon is a self-taught artist who began her artistic career when she was 33 years old. Lisa Congdon is best known for her colourful vibrant paintings and collages. Her work is most often themed around her passion […]
Red Balloons Inspired by Paul Klee
“A line is a dot that went for a walk.” – Paul Klee Paul Klee was born in Switzerland in 1879. Klee expressed himself in different styles. His art is a blend of surrealism, cubism and expressionism. He admired the drawings of children and tried to incorporate that energy and simplicity into his work. We […]