Online Portrait Art Classes, Workshops and Mentoring
Classical Realism Portrait Painting & Drawing Courses
...One of the greatest teachers ever. Marvin Mattelson changes the lives of anyone paying attention. I know I wouldn't be half the painter I am without his guidance.
Welcome to the Online Fine Art Portrait Academy where the goal is to create art that appears more real than reality. Marvin Mattelson utilizes the latest in video streaming technology, to go far beyond the limitations of a typical classroom setting in his online portrait art classes, workshops & mentoring sessions.
Marvin's teaching is based on his life-long analysis of classical paintings in museums and auction houses. He has concluded that the greatest artists of all time employed the same exact strategic thinking, thus enabling them to truly bring their art to life. But, in order to be a great artist first you need to learn how to think like one. As Michelangelo noted, “An artist paints with his brain; not with his hand.” This emphasis is what makes Marvin Mattelson's teaching so unique – it’s a deep dive into the time-honored principles which have informed history's greatest realist and classical painters.
You can read more about his teaching philosophy, as well as feedback and comments from numerous past students. Forced, by the global pandemic, to switch his teaching from traditional in-class to online learning, he quickly discovered that this new technology, enabled him, to not only replicate his innovative approach to educating artists of all levels, but it actually enhanced his ability to present the information far more effectively. You can learn about his hi-tech state of the art digital learning classroom here. Now, artists from around the globe can benefit from his teaching with a front row seat.
In order to best accommodate his students' busy schedules, Marvin offers his content in both once-a-week classes, as well as in one or two week-long workshops. Weekly classes give you the time to fully digest and apply what you've learned during the intervening days. Workshops offer a more intense experience by building upon the momentum from the previous day's class. Both are highly effective.
For artists of all levels who wish to keep expanding the scope and quality of their work, Marvin Mattelson also offers the opportunity to share in his expertise and analytical insights through one-to-one coaching and mentoring sessions. Here he can address specific problematic issues you may be having, or conversely, he can take a broader view and suggest how to enhance and expand upon both your portfolio and direction.