Making the Leap to Online Learning

July 21, 2020By Costa VavagiakisStudio Notes

I’ve invited my longtime student Stephanie Markel to compare her experiences studying art at a school and in a private studio, or as they say, “in real life,” and now virtually, on a digital platform. Stephanie has been a student of mine at the Art Students League and has also studied with me privately. A … Read More

Drawing My Mother

June 2, 2019By Costa VavagiakisStudio Notes

Back when we were kids we sketched well, but we didn’t take drawings that far. Over the last thirty years, because of the blossoming of the French academic ateliers that focus on rendering, it has reversed. Today, I find a lot of students who do finished drawings well, but don’t sketch well. I discovered a … Read More

Shading Protocol

January 20, 2019By Costa VavagiakisStudio Notes

In my drawings done in graphite on white paper, the nude figures are set against a white wall bathed in light emanating from above. The white paper that represents the wall might inhabit at least half of the dimension of the overall format. This draws the viewer’s gaze to the white of the paper, which … Read More