Monday, February 28, 2011

St. Catherine of Bologna

This is my tribute to the patron saint of artists, St. Catherine of Bologna.  She was born Catherine de'Vigri in 1413, and became a Franciscan Tertiary at the age of fourteen.  In 1431, she founded a Monestery of the Order of the Poor Clares.  She is attributed with having visions of God and Satan, and are recorded in some of her writings.  Some of her writings and artwork still survive to this day.  St. Catherine died in 1463 at the age of 48, and her body was exhumed 18 days after her death after reports of graveside miracles.  As it turns out, her body was found to be incorrupt.  Her body was relocated, and now can be seen on display at the chapel of the Poor Clares in Bologna.

St. Catherine of Bologna
oil on canvas
18x24 inches
2011



Wednesday, February 23, 2011

On Abstract Art...

"Abstract art:  A product of the untalented sold by the unprincipled to the utterly bewildered."  ~Al Capp

Female Torso
Cast drawing
red conté
2011

Friday, February 18, 2011

Studies

Figure Study
After Titian's St. Sebastian
graphite
2011




Torso of Satyr
Cast drawing
graphite
2011

Figure with Phrygian Cap
Cast drawing
graphite
2011

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

On Artists...

"Artists help us see the surprising beauty that breaks into our daily lives by celebrating that which might otherwise pass by unnoticed.  Artists are in a unique position to have an intimate record of human life, as they give us the opportunity to see not only through their eyes but also through their thoughts and emotions.  One could say that the greater the art, the more clearly we experience this communion of souls.  Artists remind us that despite the pain and ugliness in the world, something deeper exists - a beauty that peeks through the drudgery of life, whispering that there is more just beneath the surface."  -Juliette Aristides, from Classical Painting Atelier

Portrait of a Woman (After Da Vinci's La Scapigliata)
oil on canvas panel
16x20 inches
2011