Friday, June 19, 2009

Your donated art materials are making a difference in our community

WonderRoot Community Arts Center led an art activity with art materials from BINDERS donation drive at the recent Reynoldstown Wheelbarrow Festival.



As written on the festival's website, the purpose of the Reynoldstown Wheelbarrow Festival is to use art and artistic expressions to empower residents with support and recognition in their quest to grow and maintain the neighborhood they call home. The festival is also a leadership development tool for community residents to organize the festival and head the needed committees and leadership positions. All the proceeds from the festival go to neighborhood revitalization and public safety.

Visit the BINDERS website at www.bindersart.com!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

The 3rd Most Expensive Painting in the World

What makes this painting so special and worth its exorbitant price? Is it because of the artist who created it, or the woman he painted, or its controversial history? The answer is probably all of the above.

3. “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I” by Gustav Klimt, sold in 2006 for $135 million. Inflation-adjusted price $144.4 million.

Skillfully painted in 1907 by the art nouveau master Gustav Klimt, it flaunts elaborate and complex ornamentation in oil and gold on canvas. Measuring 54x54 inches (138x138 cm), the composition took Klimt three years to complete.

The painting was commissioned by Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer, a wealthy Vienna industrialist. In 1925, his wife Adele indicated in her will that the painting of her should be donated to the Austrian State Gallery. But when the Nazis took over Austria, her widowed husband Ferdinand had to flee to Switzerland. His property, including Adele’s portrait and four other Klimts, was confiscated.

Although Ferdinand and Adele had no children, he had designated his nephew and nieces, including Maria Altmann, as the inheritors of his estate.

Following WWII, the Austrian government took the position that Adele’s will had determined that the pictures were to remain in Austria. After a long court battle the Austrian court finally established that the surviving niece, Maria Altmann, was the rightful owner.

The paintings were sent to America in 2006. Soon after, in a record-breaking sale, Klimt’s portrait of Adele was sold to philanthropist Ronald Lauder, the son of Joseph and Estee Lauder, founders the cosmetics empire.

Today the painting is a centerpiece in Lauder’s collection for his Neue Galerie in New York, which has for years attempted to recover Jewish-owned art confiscated or looted by the Nazis. Lauder’s comment on the acquisition for his Neue Galerie collection: “This is our Mona Lisa.”

Previous Top-10 Listings. Read more>

Visit the BINDERS website at www.bindersart.com!

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Get Real! Realistic Portrait Painting with Marvin Mattelson

Marvin Mattelson, the par-excellence, award-winning classical oil portrait artist, will lead a Realistic Portrait Painting Workshop at BINDERS, July 6 -18, Monday through Saturday, 10am-5pm, for two consecutive weeks. The complete 12-day workshop also includes five evening lectures by Marvin.

The workshop fee of $1800 includes all lectures (schedule below) or $900 to audit all workshop sessions and lectures without painting in class.

Workshop registration is limited so sign up now to paint or to audit.

If you want to truly elevate the realism of your portrait painting skills, this is your opportunity. Marvin will devote approximately half of the Workshop sessions to demonstrating exactly what it takes to paint life-like portraits and how to incorporate these methods into your own personal approach and style.

Special Lecture Series by Marvin Mattelson
All lecture are included in the workshop fees. Lecture times are 6-8:30pm, and are open to the public at the cost of $50 per lecture.
  • Monday, July 6: "Everything I know about Painting I learned at the Met" -- An Introductory Slide Lecture outlining the historical precedents for the ideas set forth in Marvin’s Workshop.
  • Tuesday, July 7: Color Theory
  • Wednesday, July 8: Color Mixing & Palette Set-up
  • Monday, July 13: Modeling Factors: Turning the Form
  • Wednesday, July 15: Marketing and Promotion
For more information about Marvin Mattelson, and to view some of his commissioned portraits, visit his website.

Visit the BINDERS website at www.bindersart.com!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

This Week @ BINDERS - June 15-21

ART CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS

Monday, June 15:
Guided Open Studio with Kay Powell
10:30am-2pm or 6:30-8:30pm • Every Monday
Fee: $15/session. No sign up needed. Please pay the instructor.

Tuesday, June 16:
Painting - Design and Technique with Charles Y. Walls
1-4pm or 6-8:30pm • Tuesdays, 6 sessions, May 26-June 30
Fee: $140 per 6 session series

Bookmaking with Anne Elser
6-8:30pm • Tuesdays, 6 sessions, May 26-June 30 • Fee: $140

Wednesday, June 17:
Copperplate Calligraphy with Anne Elser
6-8:30pm • Wednesdays, 6 sessions, June 10-July 15 • Fee: $140

Watercolor Landscape Painting with Susan Bradford
6-8:30pm, Wednesdays, 6 sessions • May 20 - June 24 • Fee: $120

Thursday, June 18:
Visual Liberation with Pastels with Ryan Doss
6-8:30pm • Every Thursday • Fee: $25/session • Sign up now!

Friday, June 19 at BINDERS store in Charlotte:

Paint & Sketch Models

9am-8pm • Every Friday until August 14 during our extended summer Friday hours • Charlotte store only

Saturday & Sunday, June 20 and 21:

No activities planned. Stores remain open.

See all upcoming Art Classes and Workshops at BINDERS

Please note: Classes on this schedule are in our Atlanta store unless otherwise indicated. For more information please contact: Kristina Breneman at 404.237.6331 ext. 203.

EXHIBITIONS AT THE LIMELIGHT GALLERY

Showing Through June 30:
Videre Art Show. The 5th annual art show featuring Dawn K Martin’s art students - a great opportunity to collect new work by Atlanta's rising artists!

Visit the BINDERS website at www.bindersart.com!