About Stephen Benedek
Biography
Ultimately, I don't really know what drives me; I just know that I am driven, these days, to draw and paint. At one time, my preferred Sunday activities were sailing, and later, flying gliders, just occasionally delving into visual art. But for the last 20 years, my passion has been drawing and painting, mostly people.
Frequently, I will paint my subject models engaged in an activity they love; I often do dancers, musicians, acrobats, artists, etc. My preference is to show them "in action", rather than in a non-descriptive pose. It says so much more about my subject.
I try to do the figure, and face, with a high degree of accuracy and realism. But I frequently change the background, and the implied story line, from the situation in which I photographed the model. I like to create my own story line. Or, alternatively, sometimes , I will introduce an abstract quality into the background; splotches of color, or circles, or other geometric figures. Sometimes, there is no story line.
I prefer to show humanity in a positive manner. It is fashionable for many artists these days to display their models looking either unhappy, or stressed, or seemingly angry, or alternatively, emotionless. We live in a difficult, often tragic world. There are plenty of reasons to be unhappy. But there are also very good reasons to rejoice and enjoy the act of living. I prefer my models to express that.
My preferred medium is oil nowadays. It allows me to do corrections and modifications (always necessary, for me, with accurate figurative art), as the painting progresses. Also, oil colors don't fade, or change, with time.
I have no formal education, or degree in art. But I have taken many workshops and classes with excellent figurative artists, especially at the Academy of Realist Art in Toronto, Canada over the years. I also attend regular classes with a local group of visual artists, the Willowdale Group of Artists. That group also gives me the opportunity to show my works at various galleries, and other locations, in Toronto .
Frequently, I will paint my subject models engaged in an activity they love; I often do dancers, musicians, acrobats, artists, etc. My preference is to show them "in action", rather than in a non-descriptive pose. It says so much more about my subject.
I try to do the figure, and face, with a high degree of accuracy and realism. But I frequently change the background, and the implied story line, from the situation in which I photographed the model. I like to create my own story line. Or, alternatively, sometimes , I will introduce an abstract quality into the background; splotches of color, or circles, or other geometric figures. Sometimes, there is no story line.
I prefer to show humanity in a positive manner. It is fashionable for many artists these days to display their models looking either unhappy, or stressed, or seemingly angry, or alternatively, emotionless. We live in a difficult, often tragic world. There are plenty of reasons to be unhappy. But there are also very good reasons to rejoice and enjoy the act of living. I prefer my models to express that.
My preferred medium is oil nowadays. It allows me to do corrections and modifications (always necessary, for me, with accurate figurative art), as the painting progresses. Also, oil colors don't fade, or change, with time.
I have no formal education, or degree in art. But I have taken many workshops and classes with excellent figurative artists, especially at the Academy of Realist Art in Toronto, Canada over the years. I also attend regular classes with a local group of visual artists, the Willowdale Group of Artists. That group also gives me the opportunity to show my works at various galleries, and other locations, in Toronto .
