Thanks to everyone who wished me well and congratulations as I set off to Toronto with my entry, "Son of Bear" , where I attended the Miracle of the Portrait from December 7th to 10th at the Art Gallery of Ontario. On December 9th I was awarded a Certificate of Achievement in Recognition of Excellent Achievements in Fine Art Portraiture. There were 150 entries from around the world, 15 of those were chosen as top finalists. The workshops held over the 7th to 10th of December were both inspiring and highly educational, with respect to sculpture and painting techniques. The information and words of wisdom flowed from the masters:
Andrew Benyei, BaSc, MBA, AOCA, Sculptor, Canada
Koo Schadler, MFA, Portrait Artist, USA
Gwenneth Barth, CFC, MFA, Portrait Artist, Switzerland
Dan Everett Thompson, MFA, Portrait Artist, USA
Juan Martinez, BA, Portrait Artist, Canada
Yugi Wang, PHD, Professor of Tianjin Academy of Fine Art, China
I was thrilled to be a participant in the workshops. Distinguished guest, Dr. Lilly Colton, director of the Portrait Gallery of Canada had encouraging words about the future of portraiture in Canada. The festival wrapped up with the beautiful Gala Awards Dinner and petite opera performance by Anton Mamine, bass barre tone, Toronto. A most wonderful experience. I will be looking forward to the next conference and competition as well as the workshops put on throughout the year through the Portrait Society of Canada.