Art Articles

Article from Dennis Jarsdel

Born in 1480 Vimercate Italy, Gian Giacomo Caprotti da Oreno, better known as Salai was a pupil of the Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci. The nickname Salai meant ‘The Devil’ or ‘The little unclean one’. Although not many people know about him, Salai was an important part of Leonardo da Vincis personal and artistic life.

The son of Pietro di Giovanni, the tenant of Leonardo da Vinci’s vineyard near Milan, he joined Leonardo’s household and became his assistant at the young age of 10. Although he was taken in as a youth he stayed with Leonardo for the rest of his life, almost 30 years. At some point it’s safe to say that they became more than pupil and teacher…

Article by Dennis Jarsdel

Arguably the most famous painting the modern world has ever known, yet it’s not how it’s always been. Let alone the possible price of the painting itself, its valued so much that the room in the Louvre that houses and protects this painting costed over $7.5 million.

The Mona Lisa is a portrait of an Italian woman painted by the famous artist and engineer Leonardo da Vinci. The thing that makes this painting so famous is the mystery that comes with it. Who is the woman? Where is the painting set? What is the figure trying to convey? How long did this take Leonardo da Vinci to complete? Why did he decide to paint this mysterious lady?

Article by Dennis Jarsdel

Commonly in religious story-tellings, or in more modern pieces challenging contemporary ideologies, symbolism has been a tool many artist have used yet little perfected to a level of mastery. Symbolism can range from the pinching of female nipples to indicate a pregnancy, such as in the painting Gabrielle d’Estrées et une de ses soeurs (Gabrielle d’Estrées and one of her sister) to the use of the color blue in Picasso’s paintings to show the society’s poor and outcast members and highlight themes of loneliness…

Article by Dennis Jarsdel

We live in a Kaleidoscopic world, but gems and precious stones are more than mere decoration, they carry significant meanings for us all. Gold; a sign of nobility, indication of wealth, and even a badge of never ending love. Unlike the simplicity of itself, gold had a complicated history through which It had been a reason for wars, insanity and death. Through the centuries, although its composition has remained the same, the meaning of its symbolism has remolded to suit people of that time. Gold, which in the hand of artist has stirred our emotions, changed the way we behave and even altered the course of history…

Article by Andrew Campbell

Art is something that we all enjoy. In some cases, art leaves an audience wondering just what was on the artist’s mind when they created their masterpiece. Today we will look at weird art that has kept people wondering through the years.

Edward Munch made a strange painting that has confused museum paintings for some time now. Known as “The Scream”, this painting features a surreal agonized person, standing on a bridge with hands grasping his/her head, with mouth wide open…

Article by Anna Kotze

Okay, you cool arty dudes! I came across some common mistake, a presumption a lot of you artists tend to make: Take our showgirl- the egg- how many of you confuse or differentiate between, the centre light and the high light ‘of her per-form-ance’?.

Oh my, do I have to enlighten you on this? The high light is that brief moment when she connects with the light source. It is the connection, let’s call it the third eye. Being in the spot light on centre stage does encourage her to shine, fair enough, and she does show her colours in many half tones, but… the high light of her performance- is that special moment, when she connects with the light source- a very brief moment indeed! …

Article by Anna Kotze When we look at the world and observe all there is to see, within its boundaries, it feels as if we are observing a world that is happening ‘outside’. We are… 

Article by Vladimir London, Drawing Academy tutor

Russian artist Victor Koulbak

Victor Koulbak is best known for reintroducing the technique of silverpoint to the art world. This drawing technique takes its origin in the Renaissance time and now is almost forgotten.

Victor was the second-born child in his family. He was born on March the 12th, 1946 in Moscow, Russia. While his father was employed as a pilot in the Russian military, his mother was content to stay home and raise their children. It was Victor’s mother who first took notice of his capacity in regards to drawing, and she who brought him to the Academy of Fine Arts located in Moscow; here Victor was employed at study for the full four years. He later recalled those years with fondness: “There, we were taught the arts. The method of teaching used was most classic. We were held strictly to only one standard – accuracy. I liked it, and I was happy.”

“On a regular basis, the choicest work was posted in one window on the street. On the first occasion that my work was posted, I was very proud, and brought my mother and sister to see it. They were pleased with my success. They were outraged however, when on another occasion we found that the window had been broken and the singular posted item- mine- was stolen. It was for me though, my first of accomplishments.”…

Article by Article by Juhi Kulkarni Raja Ravi Verma was one of the most celebrated realistic painters of India. His grand oil paintings of India’s ancient glory, delighted turn-of-the-century India and his mass reproductions through… 

Article from Mick Parker, Drawing Academy student

Thank you ‘T’!. I found your article “How I got my art back” really helpful and inspiring.

I never studied art formally apart from a brief 6 week summer school 20 years ago, which hindered rather than helped me due to its focus on expressive methods and the short time spent actually learning to draw – the first 2 days in total! I think that experience put me off really, but like you the ‘something missing’ thought kept recurring. My dad was a typographer and graphic artist who taught me lots about drawing, but although much of it became ingrained in my subconscious, I was too ‘lazy’ to really spend any significant amount of time putting what he taught me into practice. I suspect that the ‘laziness’ was a form of perfectionism masked as procrastination – ‘I can never be as good as the artists I like so it is better not to try.’..