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Subject: classical art academies

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Maureen
Posts:23
04/02/2007 2:07 PM Alert 
In the May issue of The Artist's Magazine, Robert K. Carsten describes the ambience, as well as the courses of study, at academies devoted to the classical training of artists ("Back to the Basics, pp. 54-58). At a classical academy or atelier, aspiring artists usually spend the morning drawing from casts or from the figure under the supervision of an instructor. The course of study can last four years or more.  In the seventies and eighties, most college art departments and art academies stressed that artists should work with concepts; art should engage its time and possibly comment on the politics and structure of society; the emphasis then was on expressiveness and originality rather than on craft.

What approach do you think is more valid?

What, in your opinion, is the best art school in the country and why?
Materese
Posts:123
04/02/2007 11:05 PM Alert 
Ahhhh, a subject near and dear to my heart!

I am a very firm beleiver in the atelier method of training an artist. There are skills that need to be learned, and like learning to play a musical instrument, you can't play anything that sounds reasonable unless you have the basic skills ( with the exception ofchild prodigies and the rare true genius). Four years of this type of study provides you with the fundamentals. However, it will not guarantee that you will become an
artist . This is earned and IMHO, there are very few true artists - but I digress, just a bit.

When the pendulum swing the other way, and academic training of artists was seen as passe, it was "anything goes" and "paint what you feel". It produced a lot of baaaad art, but it also produced some magnificent examples of true and valid self expression, which is at the heart of all real art.

So, of the two, I beleive that classical training is the more valid - but it can stifle an individual and/or create countless "canned" works of art, especially if the artist is prone to "follow the crowd" or are not inclined to take their hard earned skills and infuse their work with their unique, individual mark. It's very easy to walk on the safe side of the street (guilty as charged!).

To sum up, the two need to blend.

Best art school in the U.S? In my opinion, Jacob Collins' Water Street Atelier the work I'm seeing come out of there is excellent, he expects students to work hard, be completely dedicated to their craft and from what I can see, explore their unique vision.

Materese
http://www.ghostwoodstudio.com
Gloria28374
Posts:1
04/14/2007 6:38 PM Alert 

I believe in the Classical Atelier style of learning, which is actually pretty funny considering that up until about four years ago I had never even heard of such a thing!  Now, older and wiser, and having had the benefit of a college fine art education, I know that without the skills learned in this style of teaching you will severly limit your ability to truly see and translate what you are seeing onto the two dimensional surface (or three dimensional if you are studying sculpture).

At fourty-nine years old and having just relocated from California to North Carolina, I was fortunate enough to 'stumble' into an atelier and at that very moment a serious light went on!  Three and a half years later and much, much wiser (at least artistically) my artistic abilities are so far beyond not only what they were before, but also what I could ever have imagined they could ever be.  Thank goodness for ateliers!

Having only studied with one master I am hardly an expert on which atelier is the best nor do I nessarily think that they should be 'ranked' that way.  Each master has his/her own best qualities, teaching styles and skill sets and it is the student-artists job to ascertain which is their best fit and which geographical location works for them.  There are so many good ones to choose from.

Having said that, I know how incredibly fortunate I am to be studying with Jeffrey Mims.  It was such a remarkable stroke of luck that I am even there!  I truly believe that Mims Studios provides an unparalleled classical education.  And his method of teaching cast painting is incomparable.

So don't overlook Mims Studios in Southern Pines, North Carolina.  Though Mims Studios atelier may be lesser know than some of the others, Jeffrey Mims has something exceedingly special to offer.  I feel truly blessed to have 'had to move' where this incredible atelier just happens to be located.  What a coup!  Check out his web site...you will be...well, just check it out! mimsstudios.com

Gloria
Esse Quam Videri
one who sees

Posts:508
05/04/2007 6:49 PM Alert 
totally enjoyed looking at the link thank you for sharing!....its so encouraging to see the classical style of training return!....
i was trained at the museum of fine arts,scholarship courses,boston...three years worth of drawing studies..at the time i was rearing to learn how to paint....but for three solid years we study classical drawing....from casts to life study....the experience was and is invaluable....at the same time i was learning how to paint, on my own...reading every book i could get my hands on...and? after more years than i care to say...lol....i know now that the training never ends
~I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it~
Vincent Van Gogh

www.bettyannlemist.com
Maureen
Posts:23
05/09/2007 3:25 PM Alert 

Thanks so much for the thoughtful replies. We're received a number of letters from readers (e-mail or snail mail), as well. We'll print as many as we can in the September issue. Do you think it makes a difference whether the aspiring artist is old or young? My talented nephew is in a classical program right now but is thinking about going to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, which he imagines will be more receptive to inquiry and innovation. Young people probaby need to feel free, don't you think?
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