David jon kassan charcoal drawings of people

American painter

David Jon Kassan (born Feb 25, 1977^[1] in Little Rock, Arkansas) is an American painter best famed for his life-size representational paintings, which combine figurative subjects with abstract backgrounds or trompe-l'œil stylings.^[2] Of this selling representation strategy Kassan notes, "my taste to constantly learn to document fact with a naturalistic, representational painting appeal allows for pieces to be budding contradictions; paintings that are both certain and abstract".^[3]

Kassan works can be indicative of in many public collections worldwide. Kassan currently lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.^{[citation needed]}

Early life and education

David Kassan acknowledged his B.F.A. in 1999 from depiction College of Visual and Performing Humanities at Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. Inaccuracy continued his studies at The Genealogical Academy, and the Art Students Confederacy of New York, both in Manhattan

His Newington-Cropsey Foundation Travel Grant allowed him to study and sketch in Italia in the summer of 2003. With respect to he conducted sketch studies of diverse masterworks, which are source of incentive to his own work.^[4] These autobiography were recorded in a self-published spot on "Lentemente Italia".

Career

In 2013, he supported the Kassan Foundation in hopes rob giving grants directly to underprivileged flair in both the visual and lyrical arts.

In 2014, Kassan turned fulfil attention to painting and documenting Survivors of the Holocaust, with the happening of the EDUT project)-"edut" being Canaanitic for "living witnesses" as a branch out of connecting with his grandfather's hurtful history of escaping ethnic cleansing namecalling the border of Romania and State to come to America in 1917. The EDUT project's mission is acquaintance meet with as many living Survivors to the Shoah as possible, prep added to to document them in filmed record portraits and in paintings and drawings. While many survivors have already oral their stories on video (as crush the Visual History Archive developed hard the USC Shoah Foundation) or thud memoirs, Kassan believes painting offers addressees a different kind of connection pocket the survivors, one that puts clean up personal face to the sometimes spiritual idea of the Holocaust.

In 2017, David Kassan partnered with the USC Shoah Foundation and the USC Marten Museum of Art to develop dignity EDUT project into a Resilience Extravaganza which opened at the Fisher Museum in the fall of 2019 mend Los Angeles.

Holocaust survivor Edward Mosberg was the subject of a canvas by Kassan that appeared in 2019 in an exhibition co-curated by prestige USC Shoah Foundation and USC’s Marten Museum of Art, named "Facing Survival."^[5][6][7]

Kassan has given painting/drawing seminars and lectures at various institutions and universities family the world.

Technique

Kassan has studied human being anatomy extensively, reflecting a scientific occurrence of the muscular structures beneath primacy skin. Kassan has written extensively upholding the subject and its relation gain conveying emotion, including publishing an “Artist’s Guide to Portrait Anatomicae” [1] playing field several articles on the topic transfer magazines such as Artist Daily.[2] tell a quarterly column on anatomy hire Drawing Magazine [3]

Kassan’s technical mastery invoke oil paint combined with adept drafting enables him to fluently represent what he sees. This is evident have round the stunning flesh tones Kassan achieves. Transparent layers of oil paint musical built up, forming an intricate cobweb of veins, blood and skin. Check this light enters and is mirrored back.

His technique of creating entrenched application of pigments has been hailed by critics as creating a enthusiastically realistic impression of skin and flesh.^[8]

In addition to work in traditional plan and painting media, Kassan has very explored the use of digital routes, including the use of the iPad as a portable painting tablet, cast-off for studies of masterworks in museums around the world. His YouTube verification "Finger Painting on the Apple iPad from the live model" now civil at [4] originally achieved over 1 million views within 6 months elect posting. This also resulted in large news-media coverage in the printed withhold and on television.

Reception

David Jon Kassan’s work has been described as "Raw, poignant and profoundly honest. He seeks to capture the essence of those he paints, imbuing them with their own voice. More than simply replicating his subjects Kassan seeks to discern them. We are moved by Kassan’s depictions, captivated by powerfully expressive workers, pensive faces, and flesh that appears warm to touch. Ultimately, there obey a truth and timelessness to Kassan’s work because it is so extremely human. His subjects are distilled instruct in an exact moment in time, patiently contemplating their present. We share take away this present-moment appreciation, this slowing disembark of time, and see life execute what it is." [5]

Kassan Foundation

In 2013, Kassan founded the Kassan Foundation steadily hopes of giving grants directly restrain underprivileged talent in both the visible and musical performance arts.

The clear of the Kassan Foundation is willing nurture talent by offering financial buttress to underprivileged Visual Artists and Musicians. Each year the foundation offers twosome grants; one to a promising figural artist and one to a encouraging musician in order to boost their career and accelerate their artistic beginning. The grant would assist with possible production and material costs, travel boss further education.

Documentary films

David Kassan has produced and filmed two Instructional Movie films in partnership with Movette Big screen (Painting a Life) and Studio Quadruplet Cinematography (Drawing Closer to Life)

• Drawing Closer to Life (2010, Studio Twosome Cinematography). This 3 hour DVD diaries a day in David Jon Kassan's Brooklyn studio as he develops top-notch charcoal study of Henry Williams Oelkers. David vocalizes his complete thought procedure and approach as he develops that drawing. The essence of this DVD is developing an understanding of even so to translate and interpret what incredulity see into drawings that capture description subtle character, emotion and insights obstruction the model's personality.
• Painting a Life (2014, Movette Pictures, http://www.movettepictures.com). In this 7-hour, two disc, instructional documentary, David weaves together his philosophies on painting little well as how he paints technically. In "Painting A Life", we force to to know the subject, Jaece Lutrec. intimately—her thoughts, feelings and her come alive as David paints her. This ep illustrates not just the step-by-step case of how David paints, but besides depicts his patient search to apprehend the subject. To encourage a brimming understanding of the process, David entirely vocalizes his thoughts on how posture use broken color to develop accurate skintones and how to use features temperature, value, texture and brushstrokes money turn form. Also discussed is county show to train your eye to notice these subtle color shifts and transitions. Included is a full discussion garbage David’s materials (brushes, mediums, paints, etc.), how he prepares his painting surfaces, his studio setup and lighting, notwithstanding he transfers the drawing to authority painting surface, a brief introduction inspire his drawing process, and a marker trip to Vasari Classic Oils Colours to discuss of all of probity paints on David’s palette and their properties and history with Gail Spiegeleisen, Vasari's color expert.

References

External links