Hey guys,

If anyone out there is like me you are still trying to grasp hold of the summer, let alone having to prepare for it to end. But fall is quickly approaching and even though this means cold weather and shorter nights, it also welcomes us with holiday cheer and opportunities to connect with those we love and miss. Fall is a great time of year and for those of us returning to school, or even desiring to take time out of our busy schedule to take a class here or there, the fall presents us with some great opportunities.

Over the summer we had some great workshops at SORA such as the Landscape painting class and Mini Atelier. We also continued our Saturday Life drawing class. Many students were able to attend these workshops and gain insight from our talented instructors.

Now that the fall is approaching, we have decided to continue offering many of these same workshops and classes in the upcoming fall semester. Please check ‘em out on the Workshops page. Also, if you would like to receive our newsletter, please email me at sora_art@yahoo.com. I can add you to our contact list so you will not miss out on any of the future opportunities to take a class or workshop.

Another great addition to SORA is that you can now follow us on our Facebook Fan page at: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/The-School-of-Representational-Art/143477852340579

If for some reason the link doesn’t work, just do a search for “The School of Representational Art” under Pages. Thanks guys. We really want to connect with more of you so we are taking steps to move into the social networking scene.

School will be back in session in September. I hope you guys have a wonderful August and I look forward to seeing some of you around SORA this fall!

Cheers,
Lara

Hi All,

Last month Instructor Grigor Eftimov did a 3 hour demo in the Ala Prima style for the SORA students. Working from a live model, he began with a quick wash to lock in the drawing, before applying the thicker layers of paint, working his way from the darks to the lighter areas.

The result was a lively sketch which captured the personality of the model as well as the light gray atmosphere of the day light under the model stood.

Here are some pictures:

Grigor setting up for the demo

Beginning with a quick wash in raw umber

Grigor sticks with a few colors for the flesh to create harmony

Laying in the basic flesh color and midtones after the darks are established

Most of the midtones have been put in, just the higher tones left

Finished sketch from the 3 hour demo

Over the summer, recent SORA graduate Ben Rathbone exhibited in the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition. The TOAE is Canada’s largest outdoor art exhibition with over 500 artists participating and over 100,000 visitors each year. Rathbone received the “Best Student in Show” award.

Ben Rathbone’s “Portrait of Jerald Schwab” is on display at the Best of the TOAE 2009 exhibition. The exhibition runs until February 26, 2010 at the First Canadian Place Gallery, 100 King Street West, in Toronto.

Shawn working on his cast painting

Here is the interview with Shawn Minogue, who is also a 3rd year student.

1. What brought you to sora?

I was taking part time classes at the Art Institute. I knew if I wanted to learn how to draw and paint  in my life time I needed to take full time classes. I also heard from my teacher at Art institute that SORA was the place to learn how to draw and paint.
2.  What is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned from studying at SORA?

Discipline is the most valuable lesson. I think any one can learn to draw and paint but it takes determination

3. What is the biggest challenge you face as a 3rd year student?

We need to stay focused on the task in front of us. Mistakes are an important part of the process. The main thing is to keep plowing ahead.

Peter working on his grisaille cast painting

1. What brought you to SORA?

The works of the Old Masters such as Holbein and Giovanni Bellini inspired me to attend SORA. I am just awestruck by the precision and clarity of their work and motivated to accomplish the same qualities in my own art. I want to create paintings that are orderly and harmonious.

2. What is the most valuable lesson you have learned at SORA and how does it affect your artistic style or development?

Learning to see relationships: line to line, line to value, knowing that things relate to one another. I can now see relationships clearer, which has allowed me to accomplish my aesthetic goals, which is to achieve the kind of clarity found in the works of the Old Masters. The act of looking at and emulating nature is so enjoyable that creating works of what you see is exciting. It’s not just about abstracting, but rather trying to record and capture an ephemeral moment.

1. What advice would you give to students interested in studying at SORA?

Know that you want it and that it is something that you like. Be patient with yourself.

We’ve recently begun student interviews in order to give prospective students a better understanding of the environment and education we provide at SORA. The interviews are designed to inform visitors about the diverse student backgrounds and personal experiences of individual students who attend school here. We hope you will enjoy reading about the students’ perspectives and see how each person has learned different skills from their studies at SORA.

Interview with Karen Becker, 3^rd year student

Karen Becker at work on her Long Pose

1. What brought you to SORA?

I had been freelancing as a graphic designer for 15 years and a project I worked on inspired me to get back to my roots in fine art and make creative work again. I didn’t have a painting background, so SORA offered me the chance to learn how to paint.

2. What is the most valuable lesson you have learned at SORA and how does it affect your artistic style or development?

Learning how to take a drawing to a higher finish was something I never experienced back in college. Even with my background in drawing, I never had the chance to refine my work to such a high degree. When one realizes that one can do that, it gives the person a full scope of his or her potential and skills. To realize that there is always room to learn and achieve more accuracy and beauty in one’s drawing opens up a whole new world to the student.

3. What advice would you give to students interested in studying at SORA?

Be patient in the beginning. The progress may seem slow but you will see dramatic improvements by the end of your first year and be amazed. The beginning is slow and frustrating, but just draw as much as you can; draw all the time! Have fun!

Thanks everyone for the enthusiastic turn out for the Composition Lecture. Instructor Michael Chelich went through a vast amount of reference materials during the two day session and explained the principles behind successful compositions.

Michael Chelich explains how to compose with thumbnails

Explanation of composition framework of Old Master works

Due to great demands, there will be another Composition Lecture series coming up during the spring semester. Please check back for the dates and for registration information.

The fall semester is always super busy at SORA since it is a shorter semester. We have about a month and a half left in the semester long pose, which is currently underway for all the students. Meanwhile, half of the weekdays are filled with shorter poses that vary from 2 to 4 days depending on the specific pose.

Here are some new works by students.

Drawing of Josh by Christina Caruso

Semester Long Pose in progress Charlie Critchelow

Bargue copy in progress by Kathleen Harkins

More pictures of student works will come along with some student interviews! We would like for everyone to get to know the dedicated artists who work hard at SORA.

This weekend, the students are looking forward to the 2 part lecture on the principals of composition by instructor Michael Chelich. This lecture will help the new students with their compositional studies throughout the school year as well as gain insight into the work entailed in bringing a creative piece to completion. Stay tuned for updates about the lecture!

One of SORA’s very own students, Lauren Levato, has been chosen as a featured artist by the annual Chicago Artists Month celebration in October 2009. Lauren is a second year student whose work includes both figurative drawings and assemblage involving insects and text.  See Lauren’s Chicago Artists Month info here.

From October 9th - November 7th, Lauren will be curating Binary: A Pairing of Opposite States, an exhbition which will pair Chicago artists together to create new visual art work which can be see in real time online at oppositestates.com.

The show kicked off on Friday, Oct. 9th at the Saint Paul’s Cultural Center with the Wetware Render Machine Performance, which featured SORA students and members of the audience and local artists’ community. Exploring the idea of turning people into drawing “machines” who either build off the work of the previous artist or delve into their own creations, the performance was a great hit that produced an amazing amount of art work of all different styles and media, while adhering to the classical format of drawing from a live model.

Although SORA students helped jump start the performance with their renderings, it wasn’t long before members of the audience joined in and demonstrated the universal appeal of creating art and sharing in the collaborative creative experience. The enthusiasm of the audience demonstrated the real need of making art available to everyone and continuing to foster artists’ connections to their communities.  The show also put in perspective the continual relevance of classical realism within the digital age and its relationship with non-classical media and non-representational art.

Here are some of the amazing art work created by the audience and SORA Students:

By unknown artist

By SORA Student Karen Becker

By Unknown Artist

For more information about Lauren Levato and her methodologies, please see her interview with the Columbia Chronicle.

Monolith, 11ft x 14ft, oil on canvas by Michael Chelich

Compositional Analysis of Monolith

School of Representational Art
presents:
 
Compositional Analysis of Paintings
a special two part lecture
by Michael Chelich
 

Session 1: Sunday, November 8th
The Elements and Principals of Composition
This lecture will address the principals of balance, proportion, harmony and
contrast, as well as the importance of repetition and movement for creating
a center of interest. Slide discussion of works by the Old Masters is included.
 

Session 2: Sunday, November 15th
The Procedure of Composition
This session will reveal the methodology of developing a painting from idea to finish; from thumb-nail sketches to black an white and color studies. The lecture will address how to best organize one’s thoughts and feelings into a pictorial image.
 

To Register:
email
Sora_art@yahoo.com
or call
312- 832-9224
 
Tuition:
$55 for both sessions
$30 for one session
$45 for SORA students