Classical Realism
Description
Classical Realism is an artistic movement in the late-20th and early 21st century in which drawing and painting place as high value upon skills and beauty, combining elements of 19th-century neoclassicism and realism.
The term Classical Realism first appeared as a description of literary style, as in an 1882 criticism of Milton's poetry. Its usage relating to the visual arts dates back to at least 1905 in a reference to Masaccio's paintings. Read more ↗
Key Artists
Richard F. Lack
Founding father of the Classical Realism movement who coined the term in 1982 for a landmark traveling exhibition and established Atelier Lack to preserve 19th-century academic techniques.
R. H. Ives Gammell
Crucial mentor to Richard Lack and carrier of the Boston School academic tradition whose teachings and writings laid the foundation for the Classical Realism revival.
Jacob Collins
Leading contemporary Classical Realist painter who founded the Water Street Atelier and the Grand Central Atelier in New York to train artists in rigorous classical draughtsmanship.
Nelson Shanks
Prominent Classical Realist painter and founder of Studio Incamminati in Philadelphia, celebrated for his high-realist portraits of international figures and complex allegories.
Stephen Gjertson
Co-founder of the American Society of Classical Realism and former pupil of Richard Lack who authored key monographs and painted classical representational compositions.
Famous Artworks
Fun Facts
When Vern Swanson asked Richard Lack in 1982 to coin a title for their upcoming exhibition at the Springville Museum of Art, Lack reluctantly invented the phrase 'Classical Realism' to differentiate heirs of the Boston School from photo-realists.
↗ Source: en.wikipedia.org
To preserve and promote traditional representational techniques against mainstream institutional apathy, Richard Lack and his associates founded the American Society of Classical Realism (ASCR) in 1988 and published the influential Classical Realism Journal.
↗ Source: en.wikipedia.org