Contemporary Artists - Biographical

Question 2

Yaacov Agam

Answer 2

• Known as the “Father of Kinetic Art”
• Created the “Agamograph,”
• Was selected to hold a one-man retrospective at the Guggenheim museum in New York City.
• Works are featured in major locations all around the world, examples of which include the “Villa Regina” tower in Miami, “The Agam Fountain” in Paris, “Reflection and Depth” at the Port Authority in New York, “Communication X9” on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and “Communication night and day” at the AT&T Building in New York.
• Commissioned by George Pompidou (president of the French Republic) to create “Elysee Salon.” The work of art is an entire room (Salon) within the Pompidou museum in Paris.

Question 3

Emile Bellet

Answer 3

• Paints women with no faces,
representing the universal woman encompassing beauty and femininity.
• Paints entirely with a palette knife, no brush. • Uses the “less is more” philosophy in his use of color, and simplicity of composition to extract as much as possible from a limited number of variables – brining simple elegance to the work.
• Excels at lithography. Creates lithographs at the same studio where Marcel Mouly created his lithographs and works with the same team. Much like Mouly, Bellet has a timeless appeal that is rooted in the inspiration from the great fauves.

Question 4

Andrew Bone

Answer 4

• Recognized for the detail and photo-realism
• Is a result of his real life experiences with the animal species.
• Worked as a conservationist and guide before turning to art – he is fully educated in the nature of the animals he paints.
• Landscape in his work is completely authentic to the species he is painting and just as important from a conservation standpoint.
• Artwork captures his immense respect and awe for the animals of Africa, as well as their natural beauty.
• Has said, “Don’t paint it unless you’ve studied it, been chased by it, or done something to save it.”

Question 5

Romero Britto

Answer 5

• Commissioned by Absolut Vodka for a high profile ad campaign along with Keith Haring and Andy Warhol.
• Commissioned by: Gran Marnier, Pepsi Cola, Apple computers, IBM, Disney, a United Nations postage stamp series, Britto Mini Cooper for BMW, and Bank Atlantic.
• Commissioned by the NFL to create the Super Bowl XLI pre-show in 2007. Collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, the entire Dolphin stadium in Miami was turned into a giant Britto canvas.
• Art is shown in more than 140 galleries nationwide.
• Collectors include: Michael Jordan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Andre Agassi, as well as the Guggenheims, the Rothchilds, the Kennedys, and former Whitney Museum President, William Woodside.
• Has also been collected by the Vatican and exhibited at the Louvre twice.

Question 6

Slava Brodinsky

Answer 6

• Talent was recognized and encouraged from an early age.
• Brodinsky’s art depicts countryside scenes in an incredible symphony of colors.
• Mixes sand and plaster with his pigments and then coarsely applies it to the canvas to build up texture.
• The way light interacts with this rough surface produces a show stopping effect.
• Travels the world extensively to find the unique and fascinating depth of color created by the magical light of the Mediterranean.

Question 7

Simon Bull

Answer 7

• Selected to exhibit a one-man show at Harrod’s in London, where 76 of his paintings were exhibited.
• 2002 named the official artist of the US Winter Olympics, Salt Lake City.
• Also has an “Evolutionist” style, with graphic works from Expressionist, Realism, to Experimental (Drip paintings)

Question 8

Alexander Chen

Answer 8

• Official artists of the U.S. Olympic Committee for the Beijing Summer Olympics.
• Has the distinguished honor of being the only Olympic Artist sanctioned by both the US and Beijing Olympic Committees.
• Commissioned by Unicef, Toshiba, and North West Airlines.
• Amplifies human visual perception.
• Paints only those places he has personally visited. After taking thousands of photographs and spending hours upon hours interpreting them into paintings.

Question 9

Hua Chen

Answer 9

• Captures the timeless beauty of music and the female form.
• Created official artwork for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
• Amongst the permanent collection of the National Art Museum of China.
• Grew up during the Cultural Revolution in China when western art was prohibited.
• Influenced by impressionists and post-impressionists including Degas, Renoir, Lautrec and Manet.
• Extraordinary and historical that a Chinese artist from the communist system paints impressionism.

Question 10

James Coleman

Answer 10

• Began as an animation background painter,
• Collaborated with more than 5 animation movies for Disney Studios where he developed his ability to create computer generated images.
• Works in oil, watercolor, gouache.
• Impressionistic and luminous. His art works intrigue the eye and touch the heart.
• Become one of the most collected and sought-after Disney artists around the world.
• One of the few artists in the world licensed to create Disney imagery.
• Contributions made by Coleman to the world of art span over 30 years both in film and fine art.

Question 11

Erté

Answer 11

• Most famous for his elegant fashion designs which capture the art deco period in which he worked. His delicate figures and sophisticated, glamorous designs are instantly recognizable, and his ideas and art still influence fashion into the 21st century
• 1915 -1937, Designed over 200 covers for Harper’s Bazaar
• Illustrations would appear in London News, Cosmopolitan and Vogue.
• Work found in: Victoria and Albert Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art and a sizable collection of work by Erte can be found at Museum 1999 in Tokyo.

Question 12

Marcus Glenn

Answer 12

• A native of Detroit, known for his use of bright colors and his expressive use of papers and fabrics, creating a masterful textured collage effect.
• Created a unique form of combining painting with sculpture to form a bas-relief. He calls this style “Flat Life” and has been developing the idea for more than a decade.
• Worked on an assembly line for Chrysler and was later commissioned for art work.
• Permanent collection at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, Michigan, an honor typically reserved for much older artists.

Question 13

Alfred Gockel

Answer 13

• “ambidextrous action painter”
• Met Dali, wanted to be an artist, Dali told him, “you must work very hard, you must study the masters, but not copy them and you must find your own “voice” and “identity.”
• Surrealism of Dali
• Cubesque influence by Picasso
• Rich colors influenced by Kandinsky
• Smooth brush strokes of Miro
• Sold over 130,000,000 graphic works.
• Commissioned by the U.S. Olympic committee to create an official work of art for the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy.

Question 14

Scott Jacobs

Answer 14

• Brush with a tip the size of a pencil point to create the details that render his workphoto-realistic.
• Master of the reflective surface and light.
• 1st officially licensed Harley-Davidson artist.
• Also licensed by the Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley estates.
• In the collection of Malcolm Forbes
• More than 100 hours to complete.

Question 15

Thomas Kinkade

Answer 15

• Most widely collected artist in the United States.
• “The painter of light.”
• Uses techniques of the late 19th century American painters, known as Luminists. His paintings radiate light, inviting viewers to bask in the nostalgia of earlier, less stressful times.
• His devotion to his family is shown in his work with “love notes” by hiding the letter “N” in all his paintings as a tribute to his childhood sweetheart and wife Nanette.
• Created the DNA matrix signature concept.

Question 16

Anatole Krasnyansky

Answer 16

• Traditional cityscapes, influenced by his previous career as an architect in the U.S.S.R.
• Living in U.S has inspired a wholly new style with vivid colors, musical themes, and masks.
• Masks represent different facets of our lives.
• As an architect, once set designer for a rock video for the rock band “Kiss.”
• Many one-of-a-kind watercolor paintings created on a special Japanese rice paper to create a unique textural surface.
• One of the first artists to elevate the watercolor medium to the expressive possibilities usually associated with oil painting.

Question 17

Lebadang

Answer 17

• Born in 1922 in Vietnam.
• At age 17, immigrated to France to gain an education in fine art, and he blended the influences of his native culture with European techniques to create his own, signature style.
• Often works in mixed media, creating sculptural, highly textured artwork.
• Known to express himself through painting, watercolor, sculpture, jewelry and graphic works.
• “My art works are often strange but simple,” “so everyone can hopefully feel happy and relaxed, and that’s why they like them.”

Question 18

Fanch Ledan

Answer 18

• Often pays homage to favorite artists (i.e. Picasso, Matisse, Tarkay, Le Kinff, Peter Max) by inserting their works into his “interiorscapes.”
• Creates spatial relationships that do not exist in reality; walls don’t line up. Spaces disappear and reappear in other positions. He “changes” reality to create his own “imaginary” world to invite the viewer.
• Often create combinations of locations that cannot exist in reality.
• Like view of the Taj Maja
• View of Pyramids of Egypt from an elegant private balcony.
• More than 50 one-person shows
• Exhibitions at Champs-Élysées in Paris
• Pantechnicon Gallery in San Fransisco.

Question 19

Charles Lee

Answer 19

• Classified into two distinct styles –
• More traditional works often feature women, musical themes and a romantic tone.
• Contemporary works are often bright with bold and vivid colors.
• Fondness for a bright and eye-catching pallet (including gold foil) demonstrating his keen sense of color
• In spite of such vibrant imagery, presents subjects in a calm reflective and almost ethereal way.
• Music. is the inspiration behind many of his musically themed art works. Was the lead singer of his own band younger years.

Question 20

Linda Le Kinff

Answer 20

• Official artist for the World Cup in 1998
• As a result of being chosen, the French government minted a commemorative medallion of one of her works in her honor,
• Marking the first time a living artist has received this honor.
• Official artist for the Kentucky Derby in 2010.
• Influences: hidden sensuality of Braque, masterful drawing of Matisse, the elegance of Modigliani, and the precocious maturity of Egon Schiele.
• Formerly published by Christies of London.
• Le Kinff’s works are elegant in their
• Simplicity and invite the viewer into a world that is free of all the modern day fuss and stress. Figures are at peace, absorbed in a world that is full of life’s fruitfulness.
• Her work can’t be placed in any kind of category; it is beyond style or trend. It is perpetually contemporary.

Question 21

Nano Lopez

Answer 21

• Organic textures and synthetic, human made objects into his bronzes to create pieces of art that reflect the same depth and richness he sees in the world around him.
• The bronze sculpture is created by the Lost Wax Process. The unique and time-consuming patinas are applied to emphasize surface details, patterns and textures.
• Spirited, fanciful creatures, his bronze animals are a fascinating fusion of intricate details, rich textures, and surprising connections.
• Invites us to look at the world more carefully and discover for ourselves the vibrant interwoven fabric of life.
• His subject matter, primarily figurative, describes the essential in the human condition in a strong and emotionally charged way.
• Surface texture is an important element in his work. The combination of his classical training and experimentation with materials has led to the production of avant-garde art, which combines powerful aesthetic considerations and rich textural surfaces.

Question 22

Csaba Markus

Answer 22

• Distinctive style is like no other, and for this reason he is incomparable to other artists.
• His unique style can be described as a contemporary fusion of Renaissance Europe and Classical Mythology.
• A renaissance artist of our time. He is totally devoted to his craft, controls every aspect of it;
• Makes his own dried pigment, hand crafts his own frames, creates and pulls his own silk screens, hand embellishes the artwork with ground glass, platinum, and 24 carat gold. It is his desire for each and every artwork to be unique and individual objet d’art.
• Markus paints images of women who are smart, confident, beautiful, but also sophisticated and strong. He says the world has enough ugliness in it; we change our channels and see war, poverty, hunger and violence; he wants his work to be a “channel” of positive messages and hope.
• Today one cannot collect a Michelangelo, Caravaggio or Botticelli but one can collect works by an artist who has been inspired by all of these master artists.

Question 23

Felix Mas

Answer 23

• Best known for capturing ideal visions of femininity in his lush, exquisite oil paintings and graphic works, expressively showing the tender beauty of women.
• In the style of Alphonse Mucha, Mas frequently depicts women representative of the Four Seasons.

Question 24

Marko Mavrovich

Answer 24

• Mavrovich calls upon some of the true styles of the great impressionist masters Monet and Renoir, although his work is more influenced by the California impressionists.
• Though he lives in CA, Mavrovich spends much of his time in Europe and particularly his hometown of Croatia which is clearly the inspiration behind many of his Mediterranean themed artworks today.
• The son of a painter, Mavrovich is self-taught and turned to painting full time after nearly losing his hand in while working as a diver cleaning the hulls of boats in harbor. He considers his father, who died when Marko was a boy, to be his primary influence as an artist.

Question 25

Peter Max

Answer 25

• Born in Germany and raised around the world, Max is nothing less than an iconic American artist.
• Max’s imagination and vision can be found in over 100 museums and galleries worldwide and on a variety of canvases, including the Berlin Wall and a Boeing 777 jumbo jet, currently in use by Continental Airlines.
• Max has been on the cover of Life Magazine and has had numerous national TV appearances including Johnny Carson and Larry King. Max’s visual impact on the 60’s has often been compared to the influence the Beatles had with their music.
• Max has painted of President Barrack Obama called 44 Obamas (44th president), he also did portraits for the previous 5 U.S. presidents. Also painted portraits for the Dalai Lama and Mikhail Gobachev.
• Max is a proud American and created a series of artworks that were sold specifically to raise money to help repair and restore the Statue of Liberty.
• Max has been designated Official Artist for 6 Grammys, the 25th Anniversary of the New Orleans Jazz Festival and the Woodstock Music Festival. For the 20th anniversary of Woodstock, Max was asked to create the world’s largest rock-and-roll stage for the Moscow Music Peace Festival.
• Max has been the Official Artist for 6 Super Bowls, The World Cup USA, The U.S. Tennis Open and the NHL All-Star Game.
• Max did a redesign of the “peacock” NBC logo.
• Max’s one-man retrospective show at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg drew the largest turnout for any artist in Russian history. Over 14,500 people attended.

Question 26

Igor Medvedev

Answer 26

• Medvedev is inspired by the light and history of the Mediterranean often traveling and painting on location
• He uses thick impasto brush strokes. Critics have claimed he “paints like a sculptor” - lending serigraphy as the perfect medium for his graphic editions.
• The viewer is drawn into a world dominated by serene beauty, balance and order. Strong clean forms and dramatic use of light and shadow are the hallmark of his warm, expressive style.

Question 27

Marcel Mouly

Answer 27

• Worked alongside Picasso. Having created a unique, trademark style, Mouly developed a reputation as one of the most important modernist artists of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Mouly was influenced by Braque, Matisse, and Picasso the most. Matisse influenced Mouly in the Fauvist use of color that is apparent in Mouly’s unique style.
• Park West offers an extraordinary collecting opportunity for Mouly’s lithographs, as Park West exclusively published Mouly’s lithograph editions for the last 10 years of his life.
• Permanent collections of more than 20 museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art: in Paris, Japan, and Helsinki, and Paris’ Bilbiotheque Nationale.

Question 28

Peter Nixon

Answer 28

• Deals with the concepts of movement, instantaneous expression and gesture, romance, music, dance and poetry.
• He is deeply steeped in art history and is a master draftsman.
• The distinction of having influenced both Janet Treby and Gary Benfield, both world famous artists in their own right.
• Is an innovator and his collectors know they own the artist who has inspired other artists stylistically.

Question 29

Dominic Pangborn

Answer 29

• Best defined as an “Evolutionist.” Believes that art should reflect a current mood, expression and a point in time.
• Has established his own fashion label, the Pangborn Design Collection.
• Incorporated into fashion and home décor.
• Own retail stores, which bear his name.
• Art has been published in Playboy and exhibited at museums across the country including the esteemed Detroit Institute of Art.

Question 30

Alex Pauker

Answer 30

• One of the youngest acclaimed contemporary artists to have emerged from Israel recently.
• His command over the techniques of painting and serigraphy, are advanced way beyond his years.
• For this reason, Pauker is considered one of the most “up and coming artists” on the scene today.
• His works are greatly inspired by his travels around the world uniting the sense of peace, natural beauty, and tranquility.
• Pauker uses an extraordinary impasto technique and often achieves this by painting with a palette knife.

Question 31

Pino

Answer 31

• Primarily worked as an artist for the book publishing industry.
• Pino’s recognizable style frequently connects with the public on a deep level, as his themes deftly portray the complexities of human relationships, states of connection and separation.
• Unique works were most often sold through galleries on consignment, and when Pino passed in 2010, his estate recalled all of his paintings that were not purchased. Thus his unique works are rather rare today. We are proud to display one Pino drawing at The Henry; it is one of the only unique Pino works Park West currently owns.

Question 32

Norman Rockwell

Answer 32

• Easily one of the most popular and well-known American artists of all time.
• Illustrations were featured on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post for 47 years – this led to immense exposure for the artist as he captivated an audience average of 4 million viewers.
• Recipient of the highest American honor a civilian can receive from the government: the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his “vivid and affectionate portraits of our country.”•
• Park West Gallery, through association with the Norman Rockwell Licensing Company (the estate of the artist) and Curtis Publishing (owner of the copyrights of the Saturday Evening Post artwork), has been able in recent years to bring new and exceptional collecting opportunities for Norman Rockwell artworks to enthusiastic collectors.
• Commissioned to paint the portraits for Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon.

Question 33

Schaefer-Miles

Answer 33

• Wendy Schaefer and Kevin Miles, this talented husband and wife team create lush landscapes inspired by their love of travel and nature.
• The paths through the lush greenery represents the journey of life, while the bright and illuminating light symbolizes their positive faith and strong spiritual beliefs.
• Both artists collaborate on every painting: one of them paints all the backgrounds, then the other goes over and paints the details.
• Schaefer-Miles have been exhibited at the Art Expo in: New York, Chicago, and Las Vegas.

Question 34

Victor Spahn

Answer 34

• Energetic style suggests movement and dynamism in the subjects that he portrays, and they appear to capture the essence of movement in a particular moment.
• Spahn paints with a combination of palette knife and brush.
• Spahn has participated in many exhibitions, including the Salon of Independent Artists, France in 1970. He also won first prize in New York for mosaic table.

Question 35

Itzchak Tarkay

Answer 35

• Work exemplifies the color sophistication of Matisse and the drawing style of Toulouse- Lautrec.
• Considered one of the most influential figurative artists of the early 21st Century and has inspired dozens of artists throughout the world with his contemplative depictions of the female figure.

Question 36

David Willardson

Answer 36

• “in the pantheon” of the great animation artists of history.
• Is the creative force of the “pep art movement,” an innovative new genre where cultural icons are rendered with an unprecedented fusion of color, personality, and energy.
• Worked for Disney for 17 years. He was one of the few artists that was actually sought after and approached by Disney.
• One of only a few who are licensed to use Disney imagery in the world.
• Created the logos for “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “American Graffiti.” This is what attracted Disney to him.
• Commissioned by Disney to redesign their movie posters and promotional illustrations for the re-release of the classic films in the 1980’s. Willardson created movie posters for “Bambi,” “Pinocchio,” “Snow White,” “Sleeping Beauty,” and “Lion King.”

Question 37

Tim Yanke

Answer 37

• Commissioned in 2010 to create the signature work for The Henry. It is a colossal work of art – his largest ever – that now permanently resides behind the front desk in the lobby of the hotel.
• Influenced by De Kooning, Motherwell and Pollock,
• Has no pre-conception when he works and develops his imagery spontaneously.
• Tim has a passion for Native Americans, the Southwest USA, and rock and roll.
• Blares music in his former garage-turned-studio while he works, typically works very quickly with an incredible array of media, and will frequently incorporate song lyrics or random thoughts into his works.
• Focuses on bright color palettes to attract the viewer and impact a pleasing visual effect to his highly energetic imagery.