• Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • art
  • lifestyle
  • fashion
  • beauty
  • Shop

Jessica Libor

~ Studio Journal

Jessica Libor

Tag Archives: established new york artists

My Conversation with Steven Assael

05 Sunday Feb 2012

Posted by Jessica Libor in Artist Profiles, Inspiration, Journeys

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

artist interviews, artist profiles, classical realism, established new york artists, figurative artists, inspiration for artists, jessica libor, new york artists, oil painters, prominent figurative artists, steven assael

Homebound, by Steven Assael, oil on canvas, 60"x72"

Last year, I attended a visiting artist lecture at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where Steven Assael, a New York native artist, was the guest speaker.

I was electrified at his presentation, and sat eagerly forward on my chair throughout the entire slideshow.  Seeing his work blown up large in a darkened theatre brought a new intensity to it.

D, oil on canvas, 62.5x92.5 inches, by Steven Assael 1998

What struck me about Steven’s work was the emotional pull of it.  In each of his characters that he paints, it is as if he put thier very soul into the image.  He is unflinching in depicting the relationship of the sitter and the painter, and lets you in to see the vulnerability and inner workings of his subjects.

There is also a drama, a sweet strain of sadness and mystery that runs through his work.  It seems as if he purposefully chooses unusual subjects physically, so that through his paintings he can give them a dignity and humanity that many people overlook.

Drawing by Steven Assael

After the lecture, I spoke to Mr. Assael about his work.  He was truly one of the kindest artists I’ve ever met, with a humility and quiet gravity to him, much like the work he produces.  It struck me how much you can tell about an artist by simply the work that he or she does.  In most cases, you are very much what you paint, for it comes out of the deepest place in your soul.

Nicole and James, oil on canvas, by Steven Assael, 32x20 inches, 2005

For more information about Steven Assael, check out this documentary on his work here.

PORTFOLIO

Free Visioncasting Mini-Course for Artists: make it your best year ever! Click here to get it.

Free Visioncasting Mini-Course for Artists

Follow Blog via Email

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 250 other subscribers

Follow on Instagram

Click here to follow Jessica on Instagram!

PBS WHYY Interview

Click to watch my interview for Articulate with WHYY PBS

 

Top Posts & Pages

  • "Tender Trio" original pastel painting for Valentine's
    "Tender Trio" original pastel painting for Valentine's
  • Christian Birmingham's World of Fantasty
    Christian Birmingham's World of Fantasty
  • How to Paint Like the Masters: Part 6, Painting the Ebauche
    How to Paint Like the Masters: Part 6, Painting the Ebauche
  • How to Paint Like the Masters: Part 7, Window Shading and Glazing
    How to Paint Like the Masters: Part 7, Window Shading and Glazing
  • Why it's not selfish to want success as an artist and how to stop feeling guilty
    Why it's not selfish to want success as an artist and how to stop feeling guilty
  • My quest for the BEST organic, natural lipstick: RMS Wild With Desire verses Ilia
    My quest for the BEST organic, natural lipstick: RMS Wild With Desire verses Ilia

Archives

Listen to the Podcast

[convertkit form=5087986]

Powered by WordPress.com.

 

Loading Comments...