The Art Renewal Center is promoting a return to traditional academic training for artists and has begun accreditting artist ateliers and school and are even going to be holding a "salon" and student scholarship contest for tradional figurative artists. They support moving past the modern art theories that have ruined the state of art and the public's perception of artists and bringing back pride and craftsmanship to art. (yay!)
The site also has a very large image gallery organized by artist.
No, I am not affiliated with these people and I'm not a member (yet:), but merely reading their mission makes me very happy.
Being a college art student I have learned quite well over the last few years how much traditional art and illustration and looked down upon in academic art circles. What happens when your really a Pre-Raphaelite at heart and you have to take painting classes with a proffessor who only wants art that makes statements, rather then being beautiful... Students like me have to learn how to paint like our ideals ourselves because there is no one to teach us (those of us who can't affored private ateliers), and have to be stubborn when it comes to sticking to our ideals. I was particularly unhappy about all of this last year and my painting classes were causing me quite a lot of stress and so I took to writing articles about the sad state of the art world in my weblog. So I was extremely happy when I found The Art Renewal Center. There are other people who think like me, and there is hope for the art world!
