Supporting the Arts at DaVinci Academy

Dear Artist Friends,

On March 3^rd, from 7 pm to 9 pm, DaVinci Academy of Science and the Arts will host its annual Gala fundraiser.  This event has always served a crucial role in DaVinci’s fundraising efforts; however, I hope this year will surpass all others.  

This year, the Gala committee will devote all profits from the event toward completion of the school’s Black Box Theatre.  I can think of nothing that will benefit DaVinci Academy and its students more.  This theatre will provide space for plays, musical performances, lecture series, art exhibitions, and many other significant events.  DaVinci’s students have waited many years for this opportunity, and it’s my aspiration to make it happen.

In order to pull this off, we need help from the community, and in particular, I would like to extend an invitation to my artist friends.  As part of the event, we will be holding a Silent Auction, and we would like to feature quality artwork.  If any of you have any drawings, paintings, ceramics, or sculptures for which you would be willing to donate all or part of the proceeds, please contact me via the comments below, Facebook, or e-mail.   Those of you who know me, know I hate asking for donations, but this truly is a cause that is close to my heart.  

Thank you.  

Latest Illustration Work

I've had the chance to do quite a bit of illustration work over the past month or two.  Most recently I completed an illustration for Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show.  It was a challenging, but fun, piece.  It was a rush assignment and I only had a small paragraph to work from (the story itself was being translated from Portuguese into English).  Prior to that, I completed the cover art and 24 interior illustrations for Hazzardous Universe 2.  The book is scheduled for release in March, and we're currently holding a contest for young artists.  You can check out the contest rules at www.hazzardousuniverse.com.

Christmas Ghosts

One of my proudest moments as a teacher was working with my Design Team students to create and build the Christmas Ghosts for Dickens' "A Christmas Carol."  They did an amazing job.  The Ghost of Christmas Past (in white) was about 6' tall.  The Ghost of Christmas Present (in Green) was about 7' tall.  And the Ghost of Christmas Yet-to-Come was just over 10' tall and had about a 12' arm span and cable-operated fingers.  Here is a photo of the final costumes following the opening performance.  The ghosts became instant celebrities and audience members gathered around following the shows for photos.  It was a wonderful way to cap weeks of hard work.

Life Drawing

As an art teacher, most of my curriculum is founded on life drawing.  I believe it is the best way to teach perception for visual artists, and I have found that students from 7th to 12th grade respond well to the drawing sessions.  Below are some student drawings from 2010-11.  All these were drawn from observation of a live model.  Drawing time ranges from about 15 minutes to 1.25 hours.

B.B., 11th Grade

C.N., 11th Grade

A.F., 11th Grade

B.F., 7th Grade

M.D., 11th Grade

DaVinci Academy's "A Christmas Carol"

As I mentioned in my last post, we've been getting ready for DaVinci Academy's production of "A Christmas Carol."  All of our hard work culminates this weekend, and I'm pretty sure the glue burns, late nights, and brain strains will be completely worth it.  The Design Team and Theatre students had the opportunity to design and build costumes/puppets for the four ghosts (Marley, Past, Present, and Future), and they did a wonderful job.  Here are some behind-the-scenes photos.