Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Art with Ants

salvador dali
Ant Face 1937
Salvador Dali

Why Ant Art?
Ants have been used or depicted in art for centuries.
The Hopi Indians depicted the Snake people and The Ant People:
ants in art

Here is Rafael Gómezbarros - Ant Installation:
giant ants art sculpture
"Giant Ants"

Art in Nature and art with insects is a popular topic and has been used in literature, films, childrens
books, theatre and more.
art with ants in film
"BugsLife"

Here are some images of Ants in the role of humans or a reversal of roles.
All images were hand drawn by Dan Twyman
"Ant with Umbrella"

"Ant Rescue"

"Pest Control"

Drawings were done with pencil, some ink. Images were uploaded
and then colored with a stylus.
The original drawings are on 8" x 10" white paper.
Prints are available by clicking the images above.
Ask the artist a question HERE.




Sponsored by artbydan.com

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Man donates multi-million dollar collection to Nicolaysen Art Museum includes Dali and Picasso

'HE BOUGHT ART I THINK NOT AS AN INVESTMENT, BUT AS A TRUE PASSION'
Former Nicolaysen Art Museum executive director Brooks Joyner wraps one of more than 140 pieces of art belonging to Harry Ptasynski alongside Ptasynski's executive assistant Georgia on March 21, 2014, at Ptasynski's home in Casper. Ptasynski, a local art collector, passed away Dec. 19, 2013, and donated his extensive collection including works by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Toulouse Lautrec to the Nicolaysen Art Museum. 24 selected pieces are on display through Jan. 25 in the museum's Rosenthal Gallery. 

Eric Wimmer was in shock when he stepped into a Casper home full of art.
The curator of the Nicolaysen Art Museum was visiting the home in March because its owner, who recently died, had donated his vast collection to the Nic. Wimmer entered and was immediately greeted by a painting.
Was that an authentic Thomas Moran?
Wimmer has a master’s degree in art history. In grad school, Moran, a titan in Western art, was one of his all-time favorites. He’d spend hours at a Denver art museum looking at Moran’s paintings, and now there was one sitting right in front of him in the foyer of the Casper home.
But that was only the start.

Around the corner from the Moran was an authentic Pablo Picasso lithograph. There was a signed engraving from Salvador Dali. A lithograph from famed French artist Toulouse Lautrec.
Art was in every room, except for the bathrooms. There were paintings from legendary Western artists like Charlie Russell, Frederic Remington and W.R. Leigh.
“I’m like, ‘Where am I?’” Wimmer recalled.
Wimmer was in Harry Ptasynski’s home. Before he died last December, Ptasynski donated his beloved art collection to The Nic, more than 140 pieces valued at $4 million to $5 million.
“It was just an incredibly generous gift,” Wimmer said. “When he passed, we came in and packaged all of the art and took it to the museum. As his wishes were, we could determine which pieces we wanted to keep in our permanent collection. It was up to the museum to find a new home for the remainder (of the art) and use the new funds to help and keep the doors open for years to come.”
Ptasynski was an independent petroleum producer. He was a strong supporter of the Nic and served on its board for years. He started collecting art about 50 years ago, and as his collection grew, so did his connections to art dealers, spanning from San Francisco to Paris to New York.
He attended auctions and traveled the world to find the art he loved.
“He bought art I think not as an investment, but as a true passion,” said daughter Lisa Ptasynski, who grew up in Casper but now lives in Washington state. “He never sold any of those paintings. Once they were obtained, never was one traded or sold for one another.
“He knew what he liked, and that’s what he got.”
Ptasynski’s collection ranged from the well-known to the unknown. There were no labels or plaques naming the artists. You just had to know.
At night, he would linger in front of his art with a glass of wine. Instead of moving from one to another, he’d pick out a piece, study and appreciate its beauty. There were bronze sculptures, watercolors, oil paintings, engravings, lithographs and more.
“It was like being in a museum,” Lisa said.
Some of the pieces cost more than a sports car. For example, three months before Ptasynski died, Lisa asked her father if she could have her favorite painting. It was by Frank Tenney Johnson, depicting an Indian scout coming through a valley on a white horse in the moonlight.
“And he said, “Honey, that’s just too much responsibility. I don’t know how you would insure it. That is a $110,000 painting,’” Lisa recalled. “And he was right. When your $100,000 renter’s insurance doesn’t even cover one painting, it’s clearly too much.”
Instead, Lisa selected a less expensive painting.
She wasn’t the only member of the family who loved art. Harry’s wife Nola, who died just months before him, painted. Their son Ross, who also died last year, was a photographer, painter and drawer. Lisa studied art history and portraiture photography.
“Sometimes (Harry) would go out and buy (Nola) a $75,000 W.R. Leigh (painting) for her birthday,” Lisa said. “Much better than any Helzberg diamond, in my book.”
Art is what brought the Ptasynski family together, and now Lisa is happy to share her family’s passion. She was thrilled when she learned of her father’s plan to donate his collection to the Nic.
The exhibit is titled “Recent Acquisitions from the Ptasynski Collection” and features 24 pieces of art. “It goes from his wife’s work, Nola, all the way up to Picasso,” Wimmer said.
It will remain on display until Jan. 25. The works will appear at other shows in the future.
In honor of his donation, the Nic named a section of the museum the “Ptasynski Gallery.” As for the pieces that were not selected, the museum is in the process of finding the right institutions to house the classic pieces of art.
“We’re very happy to be able to show this to the community. It’s awesome,” Wimmer said. “To be able to say, 'In Casper, you can go down and see a Picasso or a Dali,' that’s really cool.”

Friday, December 19, 2014

Mixed Media Art



mixed media


noun 
1.
  1. the integrated use of different forms of media, esp within the arts
  2. (as modifier): mixed-media musical presentations
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
This is a new work by Mixed Media artist Clara Berta.

Mixed media art comes in many forms, abstract images can be
created with textures or kept flat on the canvas or surface.
In some works you will find fabric, coffee grounds, wood, metal and more,
all with the intention of creating a unique texture.
Some abstract artists like to keep the work relatively flat and work
with oil, acrylic or water color only.


Follow this blog using the links provided.


Clara Berta was featured in a story about Water Marking Your Art



Tuesday, December 9, 2014

The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo

The Creation of Adam is a fresco painting by Michelangelo, forming part of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted circa 1511–1512. It illustrates the Biblical creation narrative from the Book of Genesis in which God breathes life into Adam, the first man. The fresco is part of a complex iconographic scheme and is chronologically the fourth in the series of panels depicting episodes from Genesis. It is the most well-known of the Sistine Chapel fresco panels, and its fame as a piece of art is rivaled only by the 
Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.
The image of the near-touching hands of God and Adam has become iconic of humanity and has been reproduced in countless imitations and parodies. Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper and Michelangelo's Creation of Adam are the most replicated religious paintings of all time.

                                                              









Friday, November 14, 2014

Art Event Downtown Los Angeles

Clara Berta Fine Art

Salone di Galleria
An Italian-inspired evening of art, wine and celebration
with Clara Berta
Please join me for the first presentation of new art, inspired by my recent Italian adventure.
Sunday November 23rd. 4-7 PM
650 South Spring Street # 1112, DTLA
Los Angeles, CA 90014
Hor d'oeuvres and refreshments will be served.
Please RSVP by Wednesday Nov. 19 to

Look forward to seeing you there!


Sunday, November 9, 2014

Rare van Gogh painting and a Giacometti sculpture fetch millions

NEW YORK — A rare piece of artwork painted by Vincent van Gogh weeks before his death sold for $61.8 million Tuesday and a sculpture by Alberto Giacometti took in over $100 million at a sale kicking off New York City's fall art auctions of impressionist and modern art.
Van Gogh's 1890 painting, "Still Life, Vase With Daisies and Poppies," had expected to fetch between $30 million and $50 million at Sotheby's evening sale in Manhattan.
One of the founders of the Museum of Modern Art, A. Conger Goodyear, acquired it in 1928. It remained in the family for decades and was on permanent exhibition at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo for 30 years. The most recent owner bought it around 1990.
The auction record for a van Gogh is $82.5 million.

The big-ticket auction at Sotheby's brought in $101 million for Giacometti's "Chariot." The rare 1951 bronze sculpture features an elongated goddess-like figure perched atop a wheeled chariot. The price almost broke the $104.3 million record for the Swiss artist.



The 1951 piece, embellished with paint to enrich the textural quality of the bronze, has been in the same collection for over 40 years. Giacometti made six casts of the "Chariot" during his lifetime. The one sold Tuesday is one of only two painted examples. Another important sculpture sold at the auction was Amedeo Modigliani's "Tete." It fetched $70.7 million, just topping the previous auction record for the artist at $69 million. The deitylike elongated head was carved in 1911 and 1912 from a block of limestone scavenged from a Paris construction site. It had a presale estimate of $45 million. The auction house Bonhams, which is selling more than 700 items from the homes of Lauren Bacall, offered two Henry Moore sculptures from her collection on Tuesday.

"Maquette for Mother and Child: Arms" sold for $281,000, just over its pre-sale estimate high of $200,000, and "Working Model for Reclining Figure: Bone Skirt," sold for over $1 million, topping its presale estimate of $600,000 to $800,000.
The legendary actress' other artwork, jewelry and furniture will be offered for sale in March.

All prices included the buyer's premium.

The major fall sales continue Wednesday at Christie's. Among the highlights is a celebrated portrait of a Parisian actress by Edouard Manet. "Spring" has a presale estimate of $25 million to $35 million.


The Getty is revealed as the buyer of Manet's 'Spring'

A portion of the work 
"Spring"
Written by The AP
Friday, 07 November 2014 07:54

The J. Paul Getty Museum was revealed on Nov. 6 as the buyer that paid a record $65.1 million for Edouard Manet's "Spring," a celebrated portrait of a Parisian actress as an embodiment of the season.
The painting will join several other Manet works on display by the end of the year, the Los Angeles museum said.
"Spring" was auctioned Wednesday at Christie's in New York City. The price, which included Christie's commission, was well above the expected high price of $35 million.
It also nearly doubled the previous record of $33.2 million paid four years ago for "Self Portrait with a Palette," another work by the 19th century French artist.
The Getty's other Manet works include "Portrait of Madame Brunet," "The Rue Mosnier with Flags," "Bullfight" and "Portrait of Julien de la Rochenoire."
Painted in 1881, two years before Manet's death, "Spring" portrays actress Jeanne Demarsy in a flowered dress, bonnet and parasol. It was presented at the 1882 Paris Salon.
"Spring" was intended to be one of four paintings featuring Parisian women representing the seasons but Manet only completed "Spring" and "Autumn" before he died in 1883 at 51.
The painting had few owners and had been in the collection of an American family for more than a century.
Christie's did not identify the seller but said proceeds will benefit a private American foundation that supports environmental, public health and other causes.
Spring was the last of Manet's Salon paintings still in private hands, Getty Director Timothy Potts said in a statement.
"It is a work of extraordinary quality and beauty, epitomizing Manet's influential conception of modernity, and executed at the height of his artistic powers," Potts said.




                     
Art Portraits

Friday, October 24, 2014

Artist Michael Godard new release Theory of Mixology

Theory of Mixology
by
Michael Godard

Click Image above or



Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Thomas Kinkade Gallery in Placerville is closing

After many years in business, the owner of the Kinkade Gallery that started it all for the Northern California artist is going to focus his attention to another business he has been developing.

Thomas Kinkade best known for his cottage art or Americana art that features bridges and cottages in Northern California passed away a few years ago while working on new release art.

See images here



Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Salvador Dali Portrait by Dan Twyman

painting of salvador dali
The original painting is a 30" x 40" on stretched canvas and was
hand painted by Dan Twyman

Dan hand drew the image on the canvas with pencil and then hand painted 
colors with brush and acrylic paints.
You can order prints by clicking the image on the website here
If you have any questions for the artist
or would like to see other works by this artist, send an Email here.




Monday, October 6, 2014

Art Workshops in Los Angeles

For details about art classes in Los Angeles

Click Image

art instruction

Call the art teacher direct:

(818) 692-0465

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Marco Toro Art


Marco Toro is an artist and art teacher. Marco teaches in the UK and visits the USA on a regular
basis. Marco will be visiting the Village Gallery in Irvine and Laguna Beach in Oct 2014.

All works are original acrylic on canvas, hand painted by Marco Toro.

   
Ask how to own his works: 310-461-9480




Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Art school Los Angeles

Learn from a Pro
Call today!
Next workshop is being held
Saturday, November 22nd 11-2 pm
___________________________________________



Monday, September 22, 2014

John Wayne by Andy Warhol

                                                                              

In 1986, the year before his death, Andy Warhol continued his appropriation of classic American icons and images with his "Cowboys and Indians" series, a portfolio of ten graphic screenprints representing traditional figures and figureheads of the American West. Here, Warhol intersperses recognizable portraits of well-known American "heroes"-- Teddy Roosevelt, Annie Oakley, General George Custer, and John Wayne, --with less familiar Native American images and motifs in his ironic commentary on Americans' collective mythologizing of the historic West. These works possess many of Warhol's stylistic hallmarks, such as his characteristic linear reiteration and his use of famous images resonant in the collective American consciousness.
John Wayne was born Marion Robert Morrison in Winterset, Iowa, in 1907.
When he was a boy, his family moved West settling in Lancaster, California and later Glendale, California where he would come to be known as Duke.  Marion’s dog, an Airedale, was named Duke, and soon the local Glendale firefighters started calling Marion Duke, too.  Duke’s academic and athletic success at Glendale High led to a football scholarship at the University of Southern California (USC).
A body surfing accident at Newport Beach cut short his promising athletic career, so the former tackle looked to studio work to help pay his tuition. In a film called The Big Trail, Marion Morrison became John Wayne, and the movie business – and the country – would never be the same.
John Wayne’s monumental film career spanned five decades.  He appeared in more than 175 films, more than a dozen directed by John Ford alone.  For an entire generation, he was Hollywood’s biggest and most durable box-office star. Incredibly versatile, Wayne starred in just about every genre Hollywood offered: war movies, romantic comedies, police dramas, histories. But it was the Western – the American cinema – where Wayne made his most lasting mark. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award, winning the Oscar for Best Actor in 1969 for True Grit. And his powerful performance in The Searchers has been singled out by filmmakers and actors alike as the greatest performance by an actor on film, ever.
american icon

In 1964, John Wayne was diagnosed with lung cancer and beat it, after a lung and several ribs were removed.  Fifteen years later he was again diagnosed with cancer — this time of the stomach – succumbing to the disease at age 72.  Posthumously, Wayne was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.  A year later, in 1980, President Jimmy Carter awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America’s highest civilian honor.  Wayne is among only a handful of individuals who have received both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.
To this day, Wayne appears in the Harris Poll’s annual listings of America’s favorite movie stars, ranking third in the most recent Poll.  He has never been out of the top ten since the Poll’s inception.
In his honor, the John Wayne Cancer Foundation (JWCF) , founded in 1985 by Wayne’s children, is an organization that brings courage, strength and grit to the fight against cancer. Since its founding, JWCF has supported awareness programs, education programs and support groups, and has also been committed to groundbreaking cancer research and education at the John Wayne Cancer Institute. The JWCF recently launched Team Duke, a fundraising effort for athletes of any level focused on a goal who want to fight cancer along the way.
2007 marks the 100th Anniversary of John Wayne’s Birth.  The year celebrates John Wayne’s incredible legacy as an international symbol and American icon.


Friday, September 19, 2014

Art Classes in Los Angeles

Award Winning Artist Clara Berta is now accepting new students for her upcoming classes!

artists workshops school for art
Clara Berta
Successful artist and art instructor.

818-692-0465


Learn from a pro in a supportive environment.





Sunday, August 31, 2014

Art for a good cause

help kids
Help kids in Kenya
Click image for more info




Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Abstract Art

Abstract
ab·stract art
noun
art that does not attempt to represent external, recognizable reality but seeks to achieve its 
effect using shapes, forms, colors, and textures.

Abstract art also known as mixed media art, has been around since the start. 
Splashes of color and primitive linework can be seen in works by some of the 
best known museum artists and when the work is organic and clean, it can 
provoke thoughts and emotions in a similar way to realistic or impressionistic art.

A good example of a successful abstract artist is Jackson Pollock who died at an 
early age due to a car accident, his memorial was held at the Museum of Modern Art. 
For an artist, being rememberd at MOMA is as good as it gets.

Today we find that interior design is relying more and more on abstract or mixed 
media because the client does not have to worry about images that might influence 
or affect viewers in a negative way.

Colors are now being researched to find what affect they have on humans. Blue as 
an example is said to be an inhibitor to hunger or "good for dieting"

An example of a successful Los Angeles abstract painter is 
Clara Berta who holds regular events, shows and  has work in a well known Los Angeles Art gallery.
abstract art



The nice thing about abstract, you can drip, throw or brush your way to success! 


Visit Clara on Twitter



Friday, August 22, 2014

John Lennon’s first ever self portrait on sale for £3million

For many, John Lennon – along with Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr – is known for starting a musical revolution with the Beatles.
However, before the Beatles even began, Lennon studied at Liverpool College of Art along with the original Beatles bassist, Stuart Sutcliffe.
This rather unflattering self-portrait is set to sell for £3million at a London auction house.
The piece dates back to 1958, an important year for the then 18-year-old Lennon as it was this year his mother was killed in a car accident, he played with Paul McCartney and George Harrison for the first time and he met his first wife, Cynthia Lennon.
The painting is rather unflattering expressionist piece showing Lennon with a pot belly and male mammaries.
Louise Cooper, the owner-managing director of CooperOwen Music Media Auctions of London which is selling the piece, said: ‘This is a unique item and we are anticipating interest from Lennon and Beatles’ collectors around the world.’
Cooper described the work as similar to Sutcliffe’s artwork from the same period.
Stuart Sutcliffe later left the band during their first tour to Hamburg to enroll at the Hamburg College of Art, yet tragically died of a brain aneurysm aged 21 in 1962.
John Lennon 1969




Friday, August 15, 2014

Leon Black’s publishing firm Phaidon agrees to buy Artspace Marketplace

By Chris Witkowsky

Leon Black-owned 
Phaidon, a publisher of books and digital products in creative arts, has agreed to buy Artspace Marketplace (artspace.com), an online market for fine art collection. The acquisition increases Phaidon’s access to global art collectors.
Press Release
Phaidon, the world’s leading publisher and distributor of books and digital products in the creative arts, today announced a global partnership with Artspace Marketplace, Inc. (www.artspace.com), the leading online marketplace for discovering and collecting fine art. The acquisition establishes a global community for art enthusiasts and professionals, artists, collectors, non-profits, galleries, and cultural institutions. Artspace is being acquired by a Phaidon affiliate company.
By acquiring Artspace, Phaidon increases its direct access to global art collectors who are also consumers of its art and design books and multimedia products. Additionally, Artspace benefits from Phaidon’s global distribution and retail presence, sales organization, and relationships with artists and those in the design community.
“We are thrilled with the investment in Artspace. We look forward to enriching the experience of our audience and expanding our reach through new initiatives, including retail presence, product development, and the joint creation of original content,” said Keith Fox, CEO of Phaidon.
“We founded Artspace to bring more art into people’s lives and to help artists, galleries, cultural institutions, and non-profits reach a broader audience. Our mission is enhanced by Phaidon’s iconic brand, legacy of excellence, and international reach,” said Catherine Levene, Co-Founder and CEO of Artspace. “We look forward to building our future together.”
For more information, visit http://www.phaidon.com
ABOUT PHAIDON
Phaidon (www.phaidon.com) is the world’s leading publisher and distributor of books and digital products in the creative arts. Phaidon has offices in New York City, London, Berlin, Madrid, Milan, Paris, and Tokyo, with worldwide distribution. 
Phaidon’s beautiful, illustrated books are treasured worldwide for their outstanding content and award winning production. Today, Phaidon has over 1,500 titles in print, featuring the finest creative work from leading innovators in all areas of the arts, architecture, design, photography, cinema, travel, food and children’s books. Phaidon is owned by the family of Debra and Leon Black. Leon Black is the Chairman of private equity firm Apollo Global Management.
ABOUT ARTSPACE
Artspace is a leader in the digital marketplace for fine art. Its mission is to make it easy for consumers to discover and collect fine art from renowned artists, galleries, and cultural institutions worldwide.




Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Art Blog

art blog
The Night Café (French: Le Café de nuit) is an oil painting created by Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh in September 1888 in Arles. Its title is inscribed lower right beneath the signature.

Old Masters art
Self Portrait with Beret and Turned up collar

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn 15 July 1606– 4 October 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art and the most important in Dutch history. His contributions to art came in a period of great wealth and cultural achievement that historians call the Dutch Golden Age when Dutch Golden Age painting, although in many ways antithetical to the Baroque style that dominated Europe, was extremely prolific and innovative, and gave rise to important new genres in painting.

impressionism
Impression Sunrise

Oscar-Claude Monet  14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a founder of French Impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. The term "Impressionism" is derived from the title of his painting Impression, soleil levant (Impression, Sunrise), which was exhibited in 1874 in the first of the independent exhibitions mounted by Monet and his associates as an alternative to the Salon de Paris.








Sunday, July 27, 2014

Art classes downtown los angeles supportive environment

Find out more about art classes with award winning artist Clara Berta, who conducts
workshops in her studio loft downtown Los Angeles.

abstract art workshops
Clara Berta is an award winning artist who places works in both commercial
and residential settings.
Find out more about Clara's workshops by sending an email or 
calling direct at:
 818-692-0465




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