I recently discovered the ARC website and was amazed and touched at your honesty and bravery in speaking out against modern 'art'. I'm an English painter and musician residing permanently in Nevada and just getting back into art following an eleven year hiatus.
The reason I left my art for so long was due to disillusionment with the art establishment and its often bizarre view of what it considered to be 'art'. The final straw for me was when I visited a high end gallery in London and was shown work by an alleged artist who literally dabbed neat watercolors onto the edge of a sheet of paper before dipping it into a bucket of water. The result resembled a $5 tie dye t-shirt pattern. The pretentious gallery owner told me that this work was as good as, if not better, than that produced by the Royal Academy which was located just down the road.
Since picking up my brushes again last year, I've sold four paintings and picked up an endorsement with Charvin Oil Colors of Cannes & Paris, one of the oldest paint manufacturers. I'm currently seeking representation from a gallery here in the US, and wondered whether you knew of any in the Pacific West who handled realism. All the galleries I've viewed online appear to deal in nonsensical modernism. I would truly appreciate any guidance you could offer.
Over my twenty five year painting career I've painted several portraits for private collections around the world, painted murals (including all the murals at Chingle Hall, England, built in 1260AD, as featured on a BBC documentary), exhibited with the Royal Institute of Oil Painters at the Pall Mall Galleries of London and had one of my Old Master copies (Bouguereau) auctioned by fine art auctioneers Bonhams of London. I still use the traditional methods of oil painting, preparing all my canvases and panels by hand with rabbit skin glue followed by a double ground of lead based primer. I use mostly Charvin oil colors with some Blockx and Michael Harding colors.
I will soon join ARC as a member, and as soon as I have enough paintings, I plan on entering ARC contests. I'm very pleased to learn of ARC's existence and feel comforted in the knowledge that there are other people out there who feel the same way about art as I do.
My very best wishes
