- David Kassan
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David Kassan Born Little Rock, Arkansas Nationality American Field Realism David Jon Kassan (Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, 1977) is a contemporary American painter best known for his life-size realist portraits. The paintings combine figurative subjects with abstract backgrounds or “tromp l’oeil texture studies,”[1] reportedly inspired by Franz Kline and Robert Rauschenberg.[2] Of this dual representation strategy Kassan notes, “my effort to constantly learn to document reality with a naturalistic, representational painting technique allows for pieces to be inherent contradictions; paintings that are both real and abstract.”[3]
Kassan currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York, and teaches painting classes and workshops at various institutions around the world.
Contents
Life and work
David Kassan received his B.F.A. in 1999 from the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. He continued his studies at The National Academy, and the Art Students League of New York, both in Manhattan, and won awards for his paintings from the Portrait Society of America,[1] the Art Students League of New York, the Society of Illustrators,[2] and Communications Arts magazine. [3]
He has also won the Newington-Cropsy Foundation’s [4] Travel Grant, which allowed him to travel, study and sketch in Italy in the summer of 2003. There he conducted sketch studies of various masterworks, which are source of inspiration to his own work.[4]
Kassan also cites a number of other varied influences, including the “sheer conceptual and executed realism”[5] of Caravaggio and American realists, in particular John Sloan of the Ashcan School.
Technique
Kassan has studied human anatomy extensively, reflecting a scientific understanding of the muscular structures beneath the skin. Kassan has written extensively on the subject and its relation to conveying emotion, including publishing an “Artist’s Guide to Portrait Anatomicae” [5] and several articles on the topic for magazines such as Artist Daily.[6] His technique of creating layered application of pigments has been hailed by critics as creating a highly realistic impression of skin and flesh.[6]
In addition to work in traditional drawing and painting media, Kassan is also exploring the use of digital media, including the use of the iPad as a portable drawing tablet, used for study sketches and impromptu demonstrations. His YouTube demonstration "Finger Painting on the Apple iPad from the live model"[7] achieved over 1 million views within 6 months of posting. This also resulted in considerable news-media coverage in the printed press and on television
Instruction
David Kassan has conducted workshops and demonstrations on drawing and painting at various international locations, including Bangalow, Australia, in April 2007, Faro, Portugal September 2009, and a month-long workshop in Porcheresse, Belgium in July 2010
A DVD on his drawing technique in charcoal and chalk is available from his website, and he has posted demonstrations online at YouTube and ustream
Exhibitions
David Kassan is currently represented by Gallery Henoch,[8] New York, New York where he had a solo exhibition in April, 2009.
References
- ^ "David Kassan," American Arts Quarterly, Volume 26, number 2. 2007.
- ^ "David Kassan," American Arts Quarterly, Volume 26, number 2. 2007.
- ^ Kassan, David. "Artist Statement," http://davidkassan.com/statement.php.
- ^ Carpenter, Sandra. "Losing Yourself in a Drawing," Artist's Sketchbook, December 2004.
- ^ Kassan, David. "Artist Statement," http://davidkassan.com/statement.php.
- ^ Philips, Carol, "David Kassan: Reluctantly Classic," Empty Magazine, November 2007
External links
Categories:- Living people
- 1977 births
- American artists
- American painters
- Contemporary painters
- Modern painters
- People from Little Rock, Arkansas
- Syracuse University alumni
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