Rebekah Baird

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Rebekah Baird

Aged 20

Florence Academy of Art

Instructor(s): Daniela Astone, Toby Neve, Per Elof Nilsson Ricklund, Maureen Hyde, Richard Greathouse, Tanvi Pathare

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  • Artworks

A Proper Pose

Charcoal

20 x 12 ins (50.8 x 30.48 cms)

Yearning for More

Grasaille

24 x 16 ins (60.96 x 40.64 cms)

Daydreaming

Charcoal

25 x 18 ins (63.5 x 45.72 cms)

Leaning male

Charcoal

26 x 18 ins (66.04 x 45.72 cms)

Decisions

Charcoal

26 x 18 ins (66.04 x 45.72 cms)

Bouquet

Oil

20 x 16 ins (50.8 x 40.64 cms)

My long term educational and career goals are to become the very best that I can, constantly striving for improvement. There is so much I want to explore, at times I feel that one lifetime won’t be enough.

I want to make a lasting impression on the people that view my works, to demonstrate those intangible emotions that we all feel, yet can’t describe with words. I want to take ordinary, everyday objects and scenes and show others the beauty they hold; beauty that is missed because we don’t take the time to stop and observe it. School helps me with this, through the sight-size method, learning to interpret that information in a way that no photograph is able.

I want to improve my skills in painting and drawing so that I can accurately describe the human figure and various landscapes, whether they are in front of me or simply the images playing out within my head. Again, education is helping me achieve this through improving my ability to observe both anatomy and prospective in a three dimensional manner that I can then draw upon, even if a figure or scene is directly in front of me.

This scholarship will help me to continue attending school and achieve these goals; to interpret information, to improve my skills beyond what they are now, and to strengthen my ability to observe and apply my skills in a well informed manner through art.

Thank you for your time, effort, and consideration.

Rebekah was born in England to a pair of US Air Force sergeants, and as such has spent her childhood roaming over hill and dale in Great Britain. She had the opportunity to see fine art in estate houses, castles and museums from the time she was small.

Her grandmother, who began attending formal art classes in her 60s, introduced Rebekah to the atelier and sight-size method.  As a 15 year old, Rebekah was transfixed by the concept of “the beautiful line,” and subsequently completed three 2-week Teen Workshops at the Texas Academy of Figurative Art, under the tutelage of Ron Cheek.

A one-week “master copy” Bouguereau workshop, by Juan C. Martinez of Chiaroscuro Atelier in Miami, Florida, added another skill set in oil painting. This was followed by a one-week workshop: Flower Painting in the style of 19th century artist Fantin Latour, by Elkin Canas.

With just weeks of formal training, Rebekah applied to the Florence Academy of Art, and was pleasantly surprised when she received her acceptance letter. Now a second-year student, Rebekah thrives in the high-work-ethic environment of the Florence Academy.

Rebekah drew initial inspiration from the classical paintings that were in her father’s books, in particular mythology and water nymph paintings by John William Waterhouse. Guest lecturer, Peter Trippi, introduced Rebekah to the glories of historical artwork by Lourens Alma-Tadema, and how he used art as a form of time travel, allowing the viewer to relate with days long gone by.

Art is Rebekah’s passion and she is dedicated to improving her skill in figurative art.