Month: June 2018

Emile Bellet

Emile Bellet, born in 1941, is a self-taught artist who has aligned himself with the discipline of the Fauves (French for “wild beasts”)—a school of artists who lived at the turn of the 20th century that includes Henri Matisse, Paul Cézanne, Raoul Dufy, and Maurice de Vlaminck. They painted in vivid non-authentic color and Bellet has mastered this discipline with an impasto knife, using highly saturated colors to paint his elongated mannerist forms.

Bellet’s paintings often center on a mysterious figure, representing a timeless and ageless femininity.

BELLET: PERSONAL HISTORY

Emile Bellet was born in Provence, France in 1941. He began to paint at 5 years old and, by the age of 19, he held his first exhibition in 1960. When he was only 12, Bellet won first prize in a national art journal. In 1976, his career began in earnest when he was noticed by Galerie Guigne. Bellet completed the stained glass windows of the church “Notre Dame de Bon Voyage” (Our Lady of Happy Travels) in 1978, in Port de Bouc, France—a beautiful display of his talent. He was also commissioned by the Alpine Maritime Region to paint the work, “Travaux des Champs” (Work in the Fields).

Every morning, Bellet rises very early and eases into his activities of the day—what he calls his “second breathing state.” He arranges flowers, tends to his olive trees, and decodes the various themes of his paintings in his head. Bellet thinks about his paintings for hours, has lunch, and begins working around noon for the rest of the day.

He enjoys painting “en plein air” as the Impressionists did, choosing to paint the villages and scenery from his native France. He lives high up in the mountains, taking in the breathtaking colors of the Mediterranean that suit his painting perfectly. By painting outdoors, Bellet feels like he is bringing a small piece of Van Gogh to our time.

 

BELLET: STYLE AND INFLUENCES

Emile Bellet’s paintings are notorious for the mysterious female he includes in his compositions. His wife, his daughter, and musings on an idyllic kind of woman are all sources of his inspiration. The familiar female figure used throughout his work is symbolic of his impression of femininity. She represents all women and, for this reason, has no facial expression. She is timeless, ageless, and universal. He also paints her in stages—first in blonde, then in brunette, and finally with red hair.

The whimsical movement derived from Bellet’s impasto knife lends a sense of vision to his work, taking the viewer to a passing, momentary location. His settings are ethereal and transient, creating an atmosphere of mystery.

Patrice de la Perriere, Director of the Art Revue, “Univers des Arts” (Universe of the Arts) says of Bellet:

“Les femmes rouges de Bellet, evanescentes, s’exposent avec magnificence dans la fragrance d’une lumiere d’ete. Qu’elles soient debout, pres d’une fenetre s’ouvrant sur un paysage romantique, ou bien assises langoureusement dans un interieurconfortable, les “femmes” de Bellet n’en finissent plus de vous attirer dans un monde onirique.” Leur presence, indiscutablement, apporte au spectateur une reelle emotion.”

“The ethereal, red women of Bellet magnificently show themselves in the fragrance of summer light. Whether they are standing near a window opening onto a romantic countryside, or sitting languorously in a comfortable interior, Bellet’s women never cease to draw you into a dreamlike world. Their presence undeniably brings a real emotion to the viewer.”

Bellet delights in his work like a peasant in the fields of Provence. Both treat their labors with love and respect and his body of work reflects this feeling. While he works with Park West, Bellet has said that he feels enchanted to be able to share his work internationally with his collectors, enjoying such freedom to create.

EMILE BELLET: ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Bellet has held numerous exhibits in France: Grenoble, Aix en Provence, Cannes, Marseille, Lyon, and Megeve. He has also held numerous exhibitions overseas: Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Switzerland and Japan (Gallery Mainichi). He currently enjoys permanent exhibits in Cannes, Lyon, Salon-de-Provence, Grenoble, Toulon, and Annecy. His impressive resume also includes illustrations for “Les Cahiers d’Art, Regards vers Ailleurs, Empreintes” (The Notebook of Art, A Look Beyond Printmaking).

 

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Anatoly Metlan

Anatoly Metlan was born in 1964 in Yalta, a city in the southern Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea.

Metlan’s interest in art developed at a young age, the child of two parents who both experimented in art themselves.

He pursued a formal education to sharpen his skills, graduating from the local high school of the arts in 1985 and going on to study at the Krivoi Rog University in Ukraine.

Metlan began exhibiting his work while in college, and soon was recognized in the surrounding community of art and was accepted to the Artists Guild of Ukraine in 1989.

After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Metlan and his family immigrated to Israel, where they continue to live.

Metlan enjoys traveling during the summer to Italy and France, capturing the warmth, light, and bold, vibrant color in the seascapes and villages of their coastal regions.

Metlan’s work has been exhibited around the world, including France, Israel, and throughout the United States. His work is eagerly collected by art lovers worldwide.

These days the artist is focusing on painting women, flamenco dancers and gypsies. The paintings are highly esthetic and full of feminine movement and passion.

Peter Max

READ MORE ABOUT PETER MAX BY CLICKING HERE

Peter Max (born Peter Max Finkelstein, October 19, 1937) is an American artist known for using bright colors in his work. Works by Max are associated with the visual arts and culture of the 1960s, particularly psychedelic art and pop art.

Peter Max in one of his studios

In 1938, Max’s parents fled Berlin, Germany, his place of birth, to escape the fomenting Nazi movement, settling in Shanghai, China, where they lived for the next ten years. In 1948, the family moved to Haifa, Israel where they lived for several years. From Israel, the family continued moving westward and stopped in Paris for several months—an experience that Max said greatly influenced his appreciation for art.

1950s

Max and his parents first settled in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn in 1953 where he attended Lafayette High School, where he was classmates with future actor Paul Sorvino. In 1956, Max began his formal art training at the Art Students League of New York in Manhattan, studying anatomy, figure drawing and composition under Frank J. Reilly who had studied at the League alongside Norman Rockwell.

1960s

In 1962, Max started a small Manhattan arts studio known as “The Daly & Max Studio,” with friend Tom Daly. Daly and Max were joined by friend and mentor Don Rubbo, and the three worked as a group on books and advertising for which they received industry recognition. Much of their work incorporated antique photographic images as elements of collage. Max’s interest in astronomy contributed to his self described “Cosmic ’60s” period, which featured what became identified as psychedelic, counter culture imagery. Max’s art was popularized nationally through TV commercials such as his 1968 “un cola” ad for the soft drink 7-Up which helped drive sales of his art posters and other merchandise.

Peter Max invited Satchidananda Saraswati to New York in 1966 for a two-day visit which turned into a permanent residence for Satchidananda, who became surrounded by many students who formed Integral Yoga International.

Max appeared on The Tonight Show on August 15, 1968.  He was featured on the cover of Life magazine’s September 5, 1969 edition under with the heading “Peter Max: Portrait of the artist as a very rich man.”

1970s

U.S. postage stamp featuring Max’s artwork commemorating Expo ’74

In 1970, many of Max’s products and posters were featured in the exhibition “The World of Peter Max,” which opened at the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco.  The United States Postal Service commissioned Max to create the 10-cent postage stamp to commemorate the Expo ’74 World’s Fair in Spokane, Washington, and Max drew a colorful psychedelic scene with a “Cosmic Jumper” and a “Smiling Sage” against a backdrop of a cloud, sun rays and a ship at sea on the theme of “Preserve the Environment.” July 4, 1976, Max began his Statue of Liberty series leading to his efforts with Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca to help in the restoration of the statue.

In 1976, “Peter Max Paints America” was commissioned by the ASEA of Sweden. The book project commemorated the United States Bicentennial and included the following foreword: “Peter Max Paints America is based on works of art commissioned by ASEA of Sweden on the 200th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, in sincere recognition of the historic bonds of friendship between the people of Sweden and the people of the United States, recalling that Sweden was one of the first countries to extend its hand in friendship to the new nation.”

1980s–present

One of Max’s art galleries, at The Forum Shops at Caesars in 2008

Max has been the official artist for many major events, including the 1994 World Cup, the Grammy Awards, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Super Bowl and others.  In 2000, Max designed the paint scheme Dale Earnhardt drove at the Winston all-star race, deviating from Earnhardt’s trademark black car. He was also the Official Artist of New York City’s 2000 Subway Series, the World Series of Major League Baseball, between the New York Yankees and the New York Mets.

Max first painted Taylor Swift’s portrait as a gift to the singer for her Grammy-winning albums Fearless and Speak Now, and has recently painted new portraits of Taylor Swift to commemorate her worldwide success.

Max is on the Board of Selectors of Jefferson Awards for Public Service.

In 1989, Max designed the cover photo – as well as the 45 (single) picture-sleeve photo – of Aretha Franklin’s ‘Through The Storm’ album.

In 1990, Max purchased a collection of Chevrolet Corvettes for an intended art project, but never used them and let them rot in a series of garages.

In 1994, Max designed the artwork for progressive rock band Yes’s fourteenth studio album, Talk. In 2012, he was chosen to paint the hull art of the New York themed ship Norwegian Breakaway by Norwegian Cruise Line.  In 2017, Max did the cover art for the Aug/Sept issue of AARP magazine.

Itzchak Tarkay

Itzchak Tarkay was an Israeli painter known for his Post-Impressionist portraits done in watercolor and acrylic. Influenced by the work of both Henri Matisse and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Tarkay’s expressive, use of color lent a dream-like quality to his serigraphs, prints, and paintings.

Born in 1935 in Subotica, Serbia, Tarkay and family settled in Israel after Allied forces freed them from a Nazi concentration camp during World War II. The artist went on to study at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem and later the Avni Institute of Art and Design in Tel Aviv.

Later in life, Tarkay mentored younger Israeli artists, including Yaacov Agam and Yuval Wolfson. He died unexpectedly on June 3, 2012 during emergency heart surgery following a visit with the director of Park West Gallery in Detroit, MI.

Itzchak Tarkay was born in 1935 in Subotica on the Yugoslav-Hungarian border. At the age of 9, Tarkay and his family were sent to the Mathausen Concentration Camp by the Nazis, where they survived until Allied liberation freed them a year later. In 1949 his family immigrated to Israel and was sent to the transit camp for new arrivals at Beer Yaakov. They lived in a kibbutz for several years, and in 1951 Tarkay received a scholarship to the Avni Art Academy where he studied under the artist Schwartzman and was mentored by other important Israeli artists of the time such as Mokady, Janko, Streichman and Stematsky.

Tarkay achieved recognition as a leading representative of a new generation of figurative artists. The inspiration for his work lies with French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, particularly the color sophistication of Matisse and the drawing style of Toulouse-Lautrec. He drew upon the history of art to create many of his compositions, designing a kind of visual poetry from the aura of his cafes and intimate settings.

As well as being an acrylic painter and watercolorist, Tarkay was a master graphic artist and his rich tapestry of form and color was achieved primarily through the use of the serigraph. In his serigraphs, many colors are laid over one another and used to create texture and transparency.

“The color is coming. When it’s finished, sometimes I’ll change the colors. It’s not something I think about.” -Itzchak Tarkay

When asked about his technique, Tarkay said it’s impossible to describe. “Can you explain your own handwriting?” he asked. He used his instinct to choose his colors and couldn’t define any other reason. “The color is coming,” he said. “When it’s finished, sometimes I’ll change the colors. It’s not something I think about.”

Most of his choices were instinctive – inspired by his surroundings, the music he listened to, the places where he traveled and nature. Very often, Tarkay painted “en plein air” and brought his sketchbook outdoors. As it grew dark, he would take a series of photos and finish the work in his studio. Tarkay said that the most difficult part of his painting is realizing when a work is complete. He recalled going to a show once after he had not seen his paintings in about three months, having the urge to re-touch each piece.

Tarkay, Agam and Albert

In the later years of his life, Tarkay shared his gifts by mentoring younger Israeli artists including, David Najar, Yuval Wolfson and Mark Kanovich who often visited his studio, worked alongside him and received his critiques. Tarkay was also the only artist to collaborate with Israeli master, Yaacov Agam (1928).

Tarkay and Agam created two paintings which incorporated both artists’ imagery in a single painting.   View the video here.

Tarkay spent between five and six hours each day in the studio, six days a week. While he had very little free time, he enjoyed going to concerts, reading books, listening to music, and visiting friends. Tarkay expressed how much he enjoyed meeting his collectors and his happiness to work with the other artists when working with Park West. He felt no sense of competition with them  and was proud to have such a rewarding relationship with the artists, collectors, and gallery.

Today, Tarkay is considered one of the most influential artists of the early 21st century and has inspired dozens of artists throughout the world with his contemplative depiction of the female figure. Three hardcover books have been written on Tarkay and his art, the most recent, “Tarkay, Profile of an Artist,” was published in 1997. For more information, view the artist’s bibliography and article pages.

Tarkay passed away on June 3, 2012 after emergency heart surgery.  He is survived by his wife Bruria Tarkay, and their two sons, Adi and Itay Tarkay.  Tarkay was 77.