Join us on Friday 6 May 2011
12:00 - 1:00pm
Speaker: Gerrit Verstraete
2-976 Enterprise Square
This presentation is an artist's view of silverpoint drawing in both traditional style and conceptual abstract style. Included are original classical and contemporary metalpoint drawings by the artist as part of his research journey at the University of Alberta. This is a rare opportunity to examine "up close and personal" an art discipline that dates back to the 15th century, in a form that has survived into the 21st century, where communication and technology have made it possible to preserve and promote the art of silverpoint drawing.
Silverpoint is a classical drawing discipline first introduced in the 15th century as a foundational drawing technique on panels prepared for oil painting. Renaissance masters such as Michelangelo, Da Vinci, and later to include Dürer and Rembrandt, developed this unique discipline into a finished art form as stand-alone drawings.
Gerrit Verstraete, AOCA, BFA, is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art & Design (OCAD University) and has been a professional artist for over 40 years. He is one of Canada's foremost silverpoint artists having developed both style and technique to include classical drawing, conceptual metalpoint works, and abstract painting. He is the founder of the Drawing Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Drawing, an online art education initiative. He is a 2010/2011 graduate student in the Master of Arts in Communication and Technology program at the University of Alberta. Details at www.gverstraete.com and www.masterpeacegallery.com