Galerie Michael opens its fall season with an Exhibition by Artist Alumni from the Florence Academy of Art

With a private evening reception on Thursday, September 15, Galerie Michael opened its doors for the inaugural exhibition of recent paintings and sculpture by artist alumni from the Florence Academy of Art (FAA) in Italy. The exhibition showcases twenty-two artists in the academy’s west coast debut whose works are reminiscent of the European masters of the Renaissance. Technically exquisite and thematically exploring mythological storytelling and a play on life, death, narcissism and the supernatural the exhibition highlights traditional craftsmanship, observation from nature and studio expertise that these artists continue.

In his opening speech gallery owner Michael Schwarz expressed his lasting commitment in presenting the works of the artists of the Florence Academy and respectfully spoke of the integrity, stimulating artistic discourse and dedication that these young artists have offered since his first visit to the academy in Florence. Equally proud of the collaboration and launching of the exhibition program was FAA founder Daniel Graves and executive director Susan Tintori who shared insights of the academy’s history and mission.

Invited guests flocked to the gallery opening delighted to meet several of the artists in person and to view the expansive new art display firsthand. During the evening clients and artists mingled in the upstairs galleries filled with impressive figurative paintings, still lifes and life size bronze sculptures. Off to an exciting new art season the exhibition continues on view through October 15, 2011.

A fifty page full color catalog is available.

Galerie Michael
224 N. Rodeo Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Mon – Sat: 10:00am to 7:00pm
Sun: 12:00pm to 6:00pm

Angel Ramiro Sanchez (b.1974)

Poppy, 20"x53". oil on canvas

Angel Ramiro Sanchez was born in 1974 in Maracaibo, Venezuela. At age six Ramiro was accepted with full scholarship into the Instituto Niños Cantores del Zulia, a school for musically gifted children. At age fourteen he began five years of apprenticeship with the realist painter, Abdon Jose Romero, an eminent specialist in murals for churches and public buildings. In 1993 a study grant from Msgr. Gustavo Ocando Yamarte, Founder of the Ninos Cantores, enable him to travel to Florence, Italy, Where he successfully passed the admission examination for the renowned Accademia di Belle Arti. For the next four years, he studied full time at the Accademia, receiving his diploma magna cum laude. Ramiro also attended drawing and painting sessions at the Florence Academy of Art, directed by painter Daniel Graves. Ramiro was appointed Senior Painting Instructor at the FAA in 1997. Today he is the Academy Painting Program Director and he shares his life and passion for art with his wife, the artist Melissa Franklin Sanchez.

Ramiro’s paintings came to the attention of Italian private collectors for the first time in 1996 at a juried exhibition in Montopoli, near Florence. In 2003 his paintings and drawings were subject of a monograph “Ramiro” by international art critic John T. Spike. In 2005 he received the special Director’s Award at the Florence International Biennale of Contemporary Art. He was then invited to show his work as a guest artist at the Austria Biennale in 2006. Ramiro won the prestigious Stobart Foundation Award in 2008, which is awarded to artists who use live models in their works. Paintings, drawings and portraits by Ramiro are found in public and private collections in Europe, the United States and Venezuela.

Per Johnny Kristiansen (b. 1965)

Is There a Place for Me?, 39"x31", oil on canvas


Per Johnny Kristiansen was born in Norway in 1965. He took part time classes in drawing and painting in his hometown and was enrolled in the T. Ramberg studio in Steinkjer, Norway, from 1999 - 2001. Per Johnny began his studies at The Florence Academy of Art in January 2002. He completed his three-year painting certificate and fourth year of specialization in painting in December 2005. He participated in a juried exhibition in Tromsø, Norway in November 2005, in the Second Annual Alumni Exhibit in Florence in 2006 and in a group exhibit at the W.H. Patterson Gallery in London in 2006. He lives and works in his hometown of Tromsø in Northern Norway, a town that is called the gateway to the arctic in the land of the midnight sun.

“Living in the north, and being a passionate outdoor person, where there are enormous contrasts in nature and light and dark, my passion was born. The last years I have been working with portraits and figure paintings, and I am very grateful to Daniel Graves and The Florence Academy of Art for making it possible for me to do so. In figure paintings I want to describe people of today in a classical realistic way - Contemporary Realism. And what is important to me is the sense of light, atmosphere, emotions and integrity.”

Jura Bedic (b.1980)

Moire II, 31"x37", oil on canvas

Jura Bedic was born in Croatia in 1980. He completed his studies at The Florence Academy of Art in 2002, and became a principle instructor first in the Intensive Drawing Program, then in the Painting Program. He has participated in group exhibitions in numerous galleries in the United States, as well as alumni exhibitions organized by the Academy in Germany and Florence, including “Realism Revisited” at the Panorama Museum, Bad Frankenhausen.

Jura is a winner of the 2001 Art Renewal Center International Scholarship Competition, and his work is featured in an article in American Artist’s “Drawing” Magazine in 2003, ”Classical Approaches to the Teaching of Drawing.” In 2007 he won "The best in Show" award in the F.A.A.'s 3rd Annual Alumni Exhibition. He continues to paint and teach in Florence, Italy.

"The success of a realistic painting does not depend merely on copying a subject. I believe it needs to offer the textures, colors, and tones to one's eye and become something more than just an illusion. Through an evolutionary process, painting again becomes a part of nature itself."

Alicia Nicole Ponzio, ( b.1974)

The Letting Go, Bronze, 61"x32"x17"

Alicia Nicole Ponzio (b.1974) is a figurative sculptress working primarily in bronze. Originally from the United States, she is currently living and working in Florence, Italy.
Since her graduation from the Florence Academy of Art Sculpture Program in 2008, Alicia has been working in her studio and teaching Artistic Anatomy, Ecorchè Sculpture, and figure drawing at the same school. In 2009, she was awarded “Best in Show” at the Fourth Alumni Exhibition of the FAA and exhibited in a group show at the Guildhall Art Gallery in London where she was a finalist for the Founders’ Prize. In 2010, she was awarded a “Certificate of Excellence” by the Portrait Society of America and taught a course in Gothenburg, Sweden. Her work can be found in private collections in Europe, the United States, and Canada.
Alicia feels fortunate to be following her dreams and living them daily. Her goal is to bring to her work movement of forms, empathy toward other human beings and sincerity of expression.
In July of 2012, Alicia plans to open a studio in San Francisco, California, where she’ll continue to develop her work and teach private lessons in sculpture.

Vitaliy Shtanko (b. 1979)

Le Variazioni, oil on canvas, 50"x60"

Vitaliy Shtanko was born on December 25, 1979, in Drogobych Ukraine in a family of artists. He had a passion for an art from a very young age as watched his father spend hours working at the easel and looked through many mysterious and fascinating art books from his family’s home library.

At age of 10, Vitaliy enrolled into The Art College for Children. For the next four years, he studied various art techniques and methods experimenting with different media such as watercolor, gouache, oil, ink and clay. Learning to draw and paint from life was the goal of the college.

In 1997 Vitaliy enrolled at the L’viv National Academy of Arts in Ukraine where he practiced classical academic approaches to drawing and painting. In 2000 Vitaliy moved to Florence with his family to attend the school of book illustration and where he eventually met Daniel Graves. The high standards of discipline and love for traditional realism of the Florence Academy of Art attracted Vitaliy to the school. Meeting the European school style was both challenging and exciting.

Jordan Sokol, (b. 1979)

The Studio, oil on canvas, 16"x20", 2011

Jordan Sokol was born in 1979 in Queens, New York. He began his artistic training at age fourteen when he was accepted into the Palm Beach County High School for the Arts. After graduating he enrolled at the Kansas City Art Institute and in 2003 began classical training at the Florence Academy of Art, where he is currently a principal painting instructor.

Jordan’s drawings and paintings have been exhibited internationally and are in private collections throughout Europe and the U.S. In the January 2011 issue of American Artist Magazine he is named as one of eleven artists to watch in 2011.

“His interiors and still lifes are bathed in unified light that, when combined with the detailed and personal subject matter, gives them a deeply lived-in feeling. His portraits are also quiet, unified works, often tinged with a touch of melancholy. Sokol’s paintings are the work of an artist comfortable with his craft who is trying to reveal a little of the beauty and mystery of the world around him.”

-Austin R. Williams, an associate editor of American Artist.

Per Olvav Olsen (b.1980)

Still life with garlic, oil on canvas, 12"x16"

Born 1980, in Trondheim, Norway, Per Olav spent 4 years studying drawing and painting at The Florence Academy of Art, where he earned a certificate in Painting in 2005. Afterwards, he returned to his hometown of Verdal in Norway, where he now works in his own studio. In addition to concentrating on his own projects, he also devotes some of his time and studio space to teaching drawing and painting. He participated in the exhibition "Realism Revisited" at the Panorama Museum in Germany in 2003, "Scandinavian Realism" in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2008, and the Annual Alumni Exhibition at the Florence Academy of Art in 2006, 2007, 2009 & 2010.

Louise Camille Fenne (b. 1972)

Portrait of Lena, 25"x17", oil on canvas

Louise Camille Fenne was born in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1972. Louise studied drawing in Aix-en Provence, France and at The Glyptothek, Copenhagen, before enrolling at The Florence Academy of Art in 1995, being intrigued by the possibility of studying traditional painting and drawing techniques. There she studied cast and figure drawing until moving to Amsterdam in 1997 and later Lucca, Italy, with the American painter Charles Weed, from whom she learnt the basic painting techniques necessary for exploring this medium further on her own.

Since 1990 she has shared a studio with Weed in Svendborg, Denmark, where they live with their two children. Louise has participated in numerous group exhibitions both in Europe and in the United States.

“I paint mainly portraits, still lifes and interiors. My inclination to paint is driven primarily by the desire to make a visual statement rather than an intellectual one. Therefore my subjects tend only to be the means to a greater aesthetic end. The paintings are observations made over time, in layers, that I hope finally result in a harmony, giving the painting its own life and allowing it to speak for itself.”

Gala Weekend

Galerie Micahel's Gala Weekend was a Blast!

Missed the event see the photos below and don't forget to stop by our new 12,000 square foot space to view our amazing fine art collection highlighting Picasso, Rembrandt, Chagall, Dali, Miro like you have never seen before. the space lends an amazing ambiance not only to our traditional art but also to the galleries newest artists of the Italian Mannerist's and Florence School's.

If you like the Getty you will love the new contemporary space! (located on 224 N rodeo entrance on the Villa Rodeo cobblestone street.)