Art Beat

By Nancy Hoover

There are brilliant woman artists who are often overlooked in history and we are celebrating the new year with our study of the techniques and portraits of Cecilia Beaux (1855-1942, USA), Lilian Westcott Hale (1881-1963, USA), Laura Coombs Hills (1859-1947,USA), and perhaps the most famous of this group, Mary Cassatt (1845-1926,USA). These women, whose talents were undeniable, overcame obstacles of gender to become artists in a restrictive Victorian environment. Their work included beautiful portraits of women and children in contemplative poses, and garnered praise and accolades at the turn of the century (1900). Our renditions of their work are on display in the Courtyard Gallery.

All classes studied sketching with contrast, seeing shapes and forms, and painting techniques in this exercise. We will follow up our study of portrait artists, in preparation for our own self portraits on canvas, in February with the inspiration of two very different painters, Frida Kahlo and Andy Warhol. The Middle School is also studying the life of Auguste Rodin (1840-1917, France) and his protégé, Camille Claudel, and creating portraits in clay.

Thank you for shopping at Jerry's Artarama and mentioning GSA. We receive a 10% credit back from every purchase towards art supplies for the school, and I am pleased to say that all of our new brushes and acrylics for our portraits were paid for with our credit!