The Compleat Sculptor School Review Bridgeview

Bridgeview Academy of Fine Art

For anyone looking for serious sculpture classes in NYC we suggest the Bridgeview School of Fine Art in Queens, a small school devoted to teaching the classical figure. Founded in 2001, Bridgeview offers a wide range of classes in painting, drawing and sculpture for every level of artists, from youth to professional.

Located in Queens (a block and a half from the subway) Bridgeview is very accessible by public transportation with shops and convenient stores to get some coffee or a snack on the way to the school from the train. The school itself is on the second floor of 42-26 28th Street facing northeast and the two main classrooms have an abundance of natural light.

Recently I attended one of their intensive weekend workshops in Queens. We worked in water-based clay that the school supplied, but this is flexible, one student preferred to work in Plastilene. Although armature construction is part of the longer classes, for such a short workshop I brought my own pre-made armature. I also brought my own clay tools but they have some there and can suggest which tools to buy if you would like to start your own collection.

Working from classical plaster casts and a live model, the first day was devoted to building and positioning the armature and starting to roughly build up the figure with water based clay. The second day was focused on getting the angles of the body correct and we started looking at the proportions. Next we finished building up the clay and continued to correct the proportions while measuring the model. The last day was devoted to surface texture and finalizing the gesture while adding fine details. Over all I learned a great deal in that short time. The weekend classes are intensive and you should come ready to work.

In this particular class, the skill level of students ranged from pro to not-so, me being the not-so, and I didn’t feel intimidated or left behind. The instruction was thorough and given that the school is still pretty small in student body – the individual attention is superior to many other larger schools.

The instructors at this one of a kind art environment are a mix of Classically trained Russian and American artists. We had two instructors, Larisa Dekermendzhi and Vitaly Patrov, both classically trained in Russia, which I was impressed to learn takes 16 years:

“At the age of 9 gifted children begin attending a special school where along with general subjects they draw, paint and sculpt every day. After high school they have to pass a number of exams to be admitted to an art academy. At the academy they study for six years. The first five are designed to challenge and improve drawing, painting and composition techniques. The sixth year is devoted to diploma work in producing a sizable, thematic painting or sculpture.” (Excerpt from www.academicart.com)

Ms. Dekermendzhi did most of the lecture and instruction while Mr. Patrov provided the demonstrations as he composed his own figure along with the class and occasionally offered demonstrations or a critique of students’ progress. Be sure to speak up if you would prefer the instructors not demonstrate on your piece, they will ask. I wasn’t trying to make a personal masterpiece – so I found the instructors transformation (of what I thought looked pretty good to what was actually accurate) fascinating and helpful and consider my finished sculpture a study for reference on future figures, not a finished piece. But that is just me. With the instruction you receive at Bridgeview it is entirely possibly to acquire masterpiece skills. It would take more than a 4 day class for me, luckily Bridgeview offers a variety of classes with a flexible schedule.

Only in New York City, can you have the Russian Classical style of art technique brought to your doorstep. And while you may find the price of the classes are slightly higher than other school in NY, the experience and skill of the instructor and small flexible class structure is well worth the difference in $.

If you already have training in sculptural anatomy, Bridgeview is a great opportunity to expand on what you know and add a different style or flavor to your art. Russian classical figurative sculpture is precise and distinctive and classes here will benefit the most advanced sculptor as well as the beginning artist. If you are a beginning artist, there is no better place for your introduction to figurative sculpture.

For the specifics about the school, instructors and available classes, please visit their website at www.academicart.com or call Lena at (718) 937-1300. and their website can be found at http://www.academicart.com/