Scottsdale Artists' School  Scottsdale, AZ

Clint Cearley

"I was fortunate to grow up in a small home school family and that my parents
recognized my aptitude with art early on.

The first years of my art education came from my mother, who instilled in me one of the most important traits an artist can have; a genuine love for art.

For two years after surpassing her technical knowledge, I was under the tutelage of a local professional artist, James Spurlock. He taught me classical art principals and approaches that have proven invaluable over the years. He instructed me in portraiture, "tricks of the trade", and a dose of living as an artist in the real world.

Thanks to the Wright Foundation, I've also been able to take several classes from Scottsdale Art School in Scottsdale, Arizona. The intense workshops there literally shaved off years of trial and error.

Classical painting and drawing is only one avenue of my art, I'm also proficient with several digital art programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Macromedia Flash.

Photography is also a vital part of my art, both as a means of painting reference and an art medium itself. "

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Tim Mathias

Amery Bohling is a rising young artist who has had a talent and passion for art all her life.

She is a plein air painter preferring California and Arizona Subjects. She enjoys high key landscapes that are expressive of the mood of the moment. Her priorities in her career are to always be a student of art and to ensure that each work has its own beauty.

Bohling graduated from the University of Arizona in Tucson after spending a year studying at the Marchutz School of Art in Aix en Provence, France. She also studies with the well respected artist Joseph Mendez.

Amery has appeared in shows throughout Southwestern United States and France. She is currently a Mentor Member of the California Art Club, a member of the Laguna Plein-Air Painters Society. She is featured in Soughtwest Art Magazine's 2002 "21 under 31" article on promising young artists.

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Danny McCaw

is the youngest son of American Expressionist Dan McCaw, and the brother of abstract painter John McCaw. Danny began drawing and painting at an early age. His youthful images soon developed into mature sensitive individual statements. Danny's admiration for traditional art and its disciplines have been the foundation for his own art. His appreciation for the freedom, exploration and discovery of the Expressionists has showed him the importance of individuality and creativity.

Awarded the Wright Foundation Scholarship in 2002, Southwest Art Magazine featured Danny as one of the newest generation's emerging artists beginning to make their mark.

Visit website: Mccawfineart.com

Jennifer Diehl-Shaffer

Born in Madison Wisconsin in 1982, Jennifer's ability to focus and work on drawings at an early age was noticed by all. That intensity and desire to study art only grew over the years. Her mentor, Henry Stinson, has instructed Jennifer in the traditional Russion-Impressionist style since her early teens.

Lea Norman

Artist's Biography

Artist Lea Norman grew up in the mid-western suburbs of Chicago and has lived there her whole life. She knew at a very young age that she wanted to be an artist. She began classes around the age of eight at the Du Page Art League in Wheaton, IL. Immediately she was winning awards and scholarships from the League, allowing her the opportunity to take classes for free. Her talent developed throughout high school and eventually earned her the Jack Arends Full Tuition Waiver Scholarship to Northern Illinois University.

Four years later Lea graduated with honors from the School of Visual and Performing Arts with a Bachelors of Fine Art, and an emphasis in watercolor painting. Along with her very detailed watercolor paintings, Lea also experiments with other mediums, such as oil, acrylic, and pastels. Since graduation she has done numerous juried fine art fairs and exhibited in galleries, businesses, and libraries.

She has also studied under nationally acclaimed artists like Arleta Pech and Jo Anna Arnett. She has studied at the Scottsdale Artists School, where she was the 2004 recipiant of the Wright Foundation Scholarship. She also plans to study at the Students Art League of New York within the next year.

Lea believes that art is an ever-changing, constant-learning process. She does not feel that she needs to limit herself to one medium or style. As an artist, Lea feels she should continually be seeking out new and exciting ways to create and explore artistic possibilities.

Artist's Statement

As an artist I strive to create a collection of paintings that will
awaken one's senses to the infinite realm of color, texture, and light. My formal training as an artist is in the medium of transparent watercolor. Many times I have been asked if my watercolor paintings are some other medium because they are so vivid and rich. I explain how I paint in multiple glazes on a very planned and structured drawing. I never soak or stretch my paper, nor do I paint my subjects wet in wet. I save that technique only for the background. My paintings are almost like a methodical equation. I paint and finish each section before moving onto the next. Unlike many watercolorists who paint with an abundance of water and minimal paint washes, my work leans toward the opposite end of the spectrum.

I paint with saturated color and the intent behind each brush stroke is
deliberate, using minimal water on my subject when needed. As for my oil paintings, I am a self-taught oil painter learning and experimenting with each new piece I create. I often find working in both mediums simultaneously is refreshing and challenging. I like to use a close perspective viewpoint for most of my compositions, pushing my subject matter to the edges of the paper and sometimes even beyond. This technique not only leads the eye around the painting, keeping the negative spaces interesting and the viewer's attention.

My present work, generally speaking, is a celebration and
experimentation of the observation of nature and visual expression of its endless possibilities. My intent is not to create a new reality, but to investigate the relationships of color, texture, and light in our current reality. Having grown up surrounded by the beauty of flowers and nature, their provocative fragrance, fluttering movement, and undeniable grace. The transparent petals, luminous colors and variety of shapes and sizes of flowers are an unending source of inspiration for my work. The challenges are to capture their beauty and timelessness and bring their living presence into the painting. In a world that is constantly changing we still find 'special things' that touch our hearts continuously.

These are the little things that bring pleasure to our sometimes-chaotic world. For me, painting the beauty of nature suspended in time is a tribute to the glorious world that surrounds us every day.

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Robert Tracy Schacht

I have been studying art for about four years. Since discovering my passion for fine art several years ago, I have devoted my time and energy to mastering the skills that are the foundation of drawing and painting. I began attending community college art courses and quickly learned that a quality fine art education requires more rigorous course work and more frequent exposure to live models. I then enrolled in the Seattle Academy of Fine Art and began to understand what it would take to develop into an artist worthy of hanging in an art gallery. After returning to Arizona. I enrolled in courses at Scottsdale Artists' School (SAS) and began attending all available open studio sessions. I continue to take classes and workshops at SAS, and coordinate open studio sessions with other artists outside the school on a weekly basis. In short, I have dedicated my life energy and time to my passion for creating fine art.

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