New ARC Living Master™

God’s Gift
by John Buxton		 We would like to welcome John Buxton, a painter of American history and heritage as an ARC Living Master™. Because his paintings are extensively researched, they enjoy an additional status. The images of his paintings are often used in documentary films, in books or articles about history, and in high schools and universities as visual reality to the written word. The original paintings hang in various museums and at historical sites as well as the homes and offices of numerous private collectors.

To learn more about John Buxton or to view his new gallery on ARC, click here.

Posted May 21st, 2013

Atelier Exhibition Opening May 24th
The ARC Approved™ Grand Central Academy of Art presents their Water Street Atelier Student Art Exhibition, free and open to the public. Peruse portrait, figure, cast, still-life and landscape drawings, paintings and sculptures by their full time students. The opening reception will be held Friday, May 24th from 6:30-9:00pm and will be open though out the month of June. Refreshments will be served.

June Viewing Hours:
Monday-Friday 1:00-2:00 pm

20 West 44th Street, 6th floor
New York, NY 10036

To view more on this and other exhibitions, click here.

Posted May 17th, 2013

New ARC Living Master™
He Lihuai was born in Chongqing, China in 1961. He worked as an art designer at Capital Museum from 1985 to 1996 after receiving Art of Bachelor degree in oil painting at Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in 1984. As a member of Beijing Artists Association and a professional artist, He has been honored as a very talented oil painter in contemporary China.
In today’s art world, where the conceptionism, photography, and image art prevail, He Lihuai, with his flaming zeal for realistic painting, successfully explores his own style – symbolic and imaginative. His work is the product of self awareness. He uses his subtle language of classic realism to describe beautiful and lonely maidens, and creates a surreal dream world through imaginary space and non-reproductive color, expressing the loneliness and melancholy of contemporary people and their aspiration to escape from reality.
- Wang Duanyun, Chinese art critic and professor of Chinese Academy of Arts.

To view his new gallery on ARC, click here.

Posted May 16th, 2013

New DVD in ARC Store
The Artist’s Guide to Perspective with Patrick Connors, is a two disk DVD set that focus on the foundations of perspective. The viewer can gain experience working with vanishing points, picture planes, an Albertian veil, and other essential techniques and materials. It is intended the work be done at the viewer’s own pace to discover how to depict any subject in one, two, and three-point perspective. The DVD is built on simple exercises that will help build one’s skills and put one’s talents to the test in one final still life sketch. Patrick Connors teaches at the New York Academy of Art, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, ARC Approved™ Studio Incamminati, and the ARC Approved™ Institute of Classical Architecture and Art. His work can be found in collections worldwide.
To learn more or order the DVD now, click here.

Posted May 15th, 2013

Golden Gate Atelier, Limited Openings Available
There are limited spaces available for students who are interested in taking classes starting in the Fall of 2013 at the Golden Gate Atelier, San Francisco, CA (Bay Area).

Cast Drawing
by second year student
Annie Cheung		 Both instructors Andrew Ameral and Sean Forester trained at the Florence Academy of Art and taught there for several years. Ameral has also been a professional illustrator and instructor in the San Francisco Academy of Art University graduate program. Forester studied at Cambridge University on a Rotary Scholarship and has lectured on classical art in America and Europe. Like all ARC Approved™ schools they are dedicated to realism. They teach sight-size, constructive drawing, anatomy, écorché, composition, art history, and humanities; a complete classical training for the realist artist that places him or her to succeed as a professional artist.

“I studied figurative art for years, but feel I never really got the education I was looking for until I found the Golden Gate Atelier.” — Tess-Marie White, Golden Gate Scholarship Student
To learn more about the program or to register for classes, click here.

Posted May 14th, 2013

Current Exhibitions
Four museum exhibitions will be closing on May 19th, 2013. The first is The Panoramic River: the Hudson and the Thames at the Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, NY which focuses on British late 18th century large-scale panorama. The Hudson River Museum’s exhibition explores the panoramic vista as the ideal expression for a new, all-embracing way of seeing the landscape that influenced how the public and artists perceived it as well. Artists in the exhibition consist of Thomas Cole, Jasper Cropsey, Robert Havell Jr, and John Kensett. Also, Piero della Francesca in America is currently running at The Frick Collection, NY. NY. Revered in his own time as a “monarch” of painting, Piero della Francesca is acknowledged today as a founding figure of the Italian Renaissance. The Frick Collection is presenting the first monographic exhibition in the United States on the artist, bringing together seven works, including six panels from the Sant’Agostino altarpiece – the largest number from this masterwork ever reassembled for display. Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London is taking place at the Seattle Art Museum in Seattle, WA. A landmark exhibition of 17th- and 18th-century European art from London makes its only stop on the West Coast. The 48 traveling works that make up this important exhibition were collected by Edward Cecil Guinness (1847-1927), the first Earl of Iveagh and heir to the Guinness Brewery. Many of the displayed works had never left Europe before, including Rembrandt’s late “Portrait of the Artist.”

Laus Veneris
by Burne-Jones		 Lastly, Pre-Raphaelites: Victorian Art and Design, 1848-1900 which consists of some of the most important Victorian paintings is currently at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. The first major survey of the art of the Pre-Raphaelites to be shown in the United States features some 130 paintings, sculptures, works on paper, and decorative art objects. Organized by Tate Britain in collaboration with the National Gallery of Art, Washington. All four of these exhibitions close on May 19th, so if you are able, be sure to see them before they close.
To view more on this and other exhibitions, click here.

Posted May 10th, 2013

New ARC Living Artist™
We would like to welcome Anara Abzhanova as an ARC Living Artist™ . Abzhanova was born in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan. From her early years she knew she wanted to be an artist. Anara has been deaf from childhood and so chose to listen to her heart as she painted the world around her. Her works are full of light and colors that merge into potent impressionistic landscapes.
From when she was a toddler, Anara was interested in drawing. She has since won many awards and since 2006 has exhibited in several solo shows. Anara has never heard the sounds of the world but God gave her the talent to see the world in all its beauty and share it with everyone.

To view her new gallery on ARC, click here.

Posted May 9th, 2013

Studio Incamminati Applications and Scholarship Opportunities

ARC 2012/2013 Salon
Second Place Figurative
Fumiko by Joe Dolderer		 Applications for Studio Incamminati’s acclaimed Professional Program are now being accepted for the 2013-2014 school year. ARC Living Master™ Nelson Shanks is Studio Incamminati’s founder and Artistic Director. Among the accomplished faculty are Joe Dolderer, second-place finisher in this year’s ARC International Salon Competition and Kerry Dunn, who earned Best in Show at the Portrait Society of America’s 2013 International Portrait Competition. They are just part of the Studio Incamminati faculty which for years has garnered numerous awards and recognition. Studio Incamminati is celebrating its 10th anniversary and its growing number of alumni are now teaching and creating art worldwide.
Flexible payment plans and scholarships are available.

Admission application deadline is June 30.
Deadline for scholarship consideration is May 31.

Click here to view the application or apply.

Posted May 8th, 2013

ARC Scholarship Competition
We would like to announce that we are now accepting entries for the 2013 ARC Scholarship Competition, designed to help talented students learn proper painting methods and techniques at one of the Art Renewal Center’s ARC Approved™ Schools. To view the full list of schools, click here.

So far we have given out over $200,000 in scholarships for students attending ARC Approved™ Schools, and this year we will be awarding yet another $30,000.

Please click here to see the prospectus.

The deadline for entries is May 31, 2013.


Giampaolo by Bayasgalan Batmagnai

Posted May 6th, 2013

ARC Salon in Fine Art Today

Best in Show Winner
Interregnum by Orley Ypon		 The press coverage of the 2012/2013 ARC Salon has already begun in Fine Art Today, a new weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine.

The Salon will also be featured in Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine in a future issue.
“The Best in Show award went to Orley Ypon for his large-scale painting “Interregnum,” a meditation on the state of humans in a world of uncertainty. At 90 x 60 inches, “Interregnum” is ambitious in scale and conception. For the Best in Show prize, Ypon wins an $8,000 cash award in addition to a DVD video produced by Streamline Publishing that will include a demonstration by the artist, an interview, and a profile on the winning piece.”

To view the press coverage, click here.

Posted May 3rd, 2013

New Aristides Atelier Student Exhibition
Students of the Aristides Atelier present classical drawings and paintings founded in traditional academic techniques while highlighting the artists’ own observational skills, demonstrating how students begin with a focus on drawing and advance to full chromatic paintings as they develop a vocabulary to create well-executed, sensitive works of art.

Gage Academy – Rosen Gallery – 1501 10th Ave. East, Seattle, WA 98102

May 10 – June 7, 2013

Opening Reception: Friday, May 10, 6:00-8:00pm.

To find out more about this and other events, please click here.


Serenity by Ioulia Kouskova

Posted May 2nd, 2013

Sotheby’s New York Major 19th Century Sale

The Signal
by John William Godward		 Sotheby’s New York is about to have its bi-annual major 19th century painting sale on May 9th. The sale will include five William Bouguereau paintings, two by Jehan George Vibert, two by Eugen van Blass, three by Jean-Leon Gérôme, two by Frederick Arthur Bridgman, two Rudolf Ernst, and other major works by James-Jacques-Joseph Tissot, Jean Béraud, John William Godward, and Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema. The pre-sale viewing is open to the public starting Friday May 3rd, and will be open until 1pm the day before the sale. Auction pre-sales are an important way the public gets to view paintings that go from one private collection to another.

To view the full auction catalogue, click here.

Posted April 29th, 2013

ARC Salon Unveiling in 4 Days
There are only 4 days left before the unveiling of the winning and finalist works of the 2012/2013 ARC Salon. Be sure to visit ARC on April 30th to see the results.

With an approximate 2000 entries this year by over 850 artists, the competition was steeper then ever. Even with the additional category, expanding our finalist cut up to the top 600 entries, we still are only including the top 30% of works submitted. The ARC Salon Catalogue will most likely run approximately 200 pages and include 600 full color images, winners will receive full page plates. Once we announce the winners the price of the catalogue will increase.

To pre-order your copy now at the discounted rate, click here.

Posted April 26th, 2013

New ARC Associate Living Master™
Jason Patrick Jenkins was born and raised in Newfoundland, Canada, and discovered drawing in a time before he can remember. About his work he has said the following:
“I want to contribute to a revival of traditional art-making and a reinvestment of value and interest from a currently disenfranchised and alienated public. I want to use art to awaken compassion and sensitivity in a generation that has been dulled by nihilism and desensitization. Great art can provide transcendence, clarity of vision, and a sense of purpose. In the age in which we live, we as a society have an unfulfilled holistic need, and I believe traditional humanist art can help fill that need. I believe in the power and importance of humanism in art-making and its ability to benefit society. I believe it is the vocation and even the responsibility of artists to create and promote values in society, and to work toward fulfilling the needs of it and its individuals. That is the very important contribution I want to make to society and to my generation, and it is the legacy I want to leave to future generations.”

To view his new gallery on ARC, click here.

Posted April 26th, 2013

Christie’s New York Major 19th Century Sale

Reverie Sur le Seuil
by William Bouguereau		 Christie’s New York is about to have its bi-annual major 19th century painting sale on April 29th. Two William Bougureau paintings, one of which, Reverie Sur le Seuil, has not been seen by the public for decades. The sale also includes important works by Fantin-Latour, Sir Alfred Munnings, and Leon L’hermitte. The pre-sale viewing is open to the public starting this Friday and will be open until the morning of the sale on April 29th. Auction pre-sales are an important way the public gets to view paintings that go from one private collection to another.

To view the full auction catalogue, click here.

Posted April 24th, 2013

Ani Academies Exhibition in Epoch Times
The Ani Academies exhibition at Rehs Contemporary Galleries in New York attracted the attention of the Epoch Times after it appeared in ARC announcements. The article titled Ani Art Academies Offer Free, but Rigorous, Art Instruction highlights the amazing techniques of the Ani Academy Instructors and students. The program to our knowledge is the only privately owned and run realist art institution at which all accepted students get to attend for free. Only 10 exceptionally dedicated students get accepted each year.

To read the full article about this ARC Approved Atelier, click here.


“Boney Brawler” by instructor Timothy Jahn.

Posted April 23rd, 2013

ARC Salon Unveiling Only 11 Days Away
There are only 11 days left before the unveiling of the winning and finalist works of the 2012/2013 ARC Salon. Be sure to visit ARC on April 30th to see the results.

With an approximate 2000 entries this year by over 850 artists, the competition was steeper then ever. Even with the additional category, expanding our finalist cut up to the top 600 entries, we still are only including the top 30% of works submitted. The ARC Salon Catalogue will most likely run approximately 200 pages and include 600 full color images, winners will receive full page plates. Once we announce the winners the price of the catalogue will increase.

To pre-order your copy now at the discounted rate, click here.

Posted April 19th, 2013

Han Wu Shen Brings $78,000 at Auction
We wanted to follow up with our readers that the four paintings by ARC Living Master™ Han-Wu Shen which recently appeared in the Sotheby’s Hong Kong 20th Century Chinese Art April 6th auction all sold.
Strange Forrest reached the top of its estimate at approximatly $30,000 and On the Way went four times over estimate and achieved a price of $78,000. It is the highest price one of his paintings as brought to date. Sotheby’s included a large write up on the artist, his relationship to ARC Chairman Frederick Ross and the Art Renewal Center in their auction catalogue. Shen has had a full and successful career in China before coming to the United States, and his work bears strong resemblance to the famous work of Chinese artist Wang Yidong in subject, color pallet, composition and technical execution. Yidong, who is five years younger then Shen, regularly has his paintings bring over $1,000,000 US dollars for a single work at auction. We believe Shen’s prices at auction will continue to climb until they achieve a comparable price level.
On the Way by Han-Wu Shen

Posted April 18th, 2013

The California Art Club’s 102nd Annual Gold Medal Juried Exhibition

Last Train Home by Tony Pro		 The California Art Club will present the 102nd Annual Gold Medal Juried Exhibition at the USC Fisher Museum of Art on the campus of the University of Southern California from June 2 to 23, 2013.

While this annual display of contemporary-realist art, ranging from landscape paintings to figurative works and sculpture, is being staged at this venue for the very first time, the event returns to Exposition Park where 26 of the first 35 Gold Medal Exhibitions were displayed. The last exhibition presented at this historical park was the 35th installment, on view in the fall of 1944 at the Los Angeles County Museum of History, Science and Art, which is now the Natural History Museum.

The upcoming Gold Medal Exhibition will feature nearly 200 never-before-seen works of art, created using time-honored fine art techniques, but modern in their messages. Addressing wide-ranging issues from cultural diversity to environmental preservation and urbanization, the exhibition is unthemed to encourage artists to take risks and raise the bar with their art.

For more information on this and other exhibitions, click here.

Posted April 17th, 2013

Congratulations to John Pototschnik
ARC Associate Living Master ™ John Pototschnik recently won “Best of Show” in the Plein Air Southwest Salon. About the award, Pototschnik said the following:
“What can I say? While attending the opening reception of the Outdoor Painters Society Plein Air Southwest Salon 2013, held at Southwest Gallery in Dallas, I learned one of my paintings was selected “Best of Show”.
“Left Behind” actually began as a larger painting but was cut down to improve the composition. Painted in one six-hour session, on-site, few refinements were needed back in the studio. Originally titled “Beside a Fallen Giant”, the new title popped into my mind while laying in bed two nights before the show…better expressing the story I felt while creating the piece.”

The French term en plein air means “in the open air,” but it’s come to represent the art of painting outdoors on location.

To read more about the show and the award, click here.

Posted April 16th, 2013

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