soutsosgallery © copyright

Brigitte Bardot

original painting-portrait

plastic colors, 120x90cm canvas

soutsosgallery © copyright

Brigitte Bardot

original painting-portrait

plastic colors

soutsosgallery © copyright

Vincent Price “Theatre Of Blood” 1973

original painting portrait

plastic colors, 60x80cm canvas

soutsosgallery © copyright

Gary Cooper, Burt Lancaster

“Vera Cruz” 1954 (Robert Aldrich)

original painting-poster

plastic colors, 55x75cm

soutsosgallery © copyright

Lee Van Cleef 

original painting portrait

plastic colors, 40x60cm canvas

Marilyn Monroe

original painting-portrait

plastic colors, 50x70cm canvas

Marilyn Monroe

original painting-portrait

plastic colors, 50x70cm  canvas

Marilyn Monroe

original painting-portrait

plastic colors, 80x100cm canvas

soutsosgallery © copyright

Sophia Loren

“Ieri, Oggi, Domani”1963 (Vittorio De Sica)

original painting poster

acrylics, plastic colors

80x120cm canvas

Sophia Loren  “Matrimonio All’Italiana” 1964

original painting-portrait,

plastic colors, 50x70cm canvas

soutsosgallery © copyright

Roger Moore “Octopussy” 1983

original painting portrait, gouache 35x50cm

Marlon Brando “Last Tango In Paris” 1972 

original painting portrait

plastic colors, 50x70cm canvas

John Wayne

original painting portrait

plastic colors, 100x80cm canvas

Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh

“Gone With The Wind” 1939

original painting poster

acrylics, plastic colors

100x70cm canvas

Burt Lancaster “The Killers” 1946

original painting portrait

acrylics, plastic colors

90x70cm canvas

Andy Warhol

original painting portrait

acrylics, plastic colors

90x70cm canvas

Alfred Hitchcock

original painting portrait

acrylics, plastic colors

90x70cm canvas

soutsosgallery © copyright

Peter Ustinov

Gouache 35x50cm

soutsosgallery © copyright

Steve McQueen “The Hunter” 1980

Gouache, 35x50cm

Ever since seeing the television show “Star Portraits” I have wanted to be on it as an artist.  I really think that I could have a chance at having my painting chosen by the star.  Unfortunately, as the show runs out of Ontario, and I live in BC, I doubt it will happen.  I thought I would mention it in this post anyway, just in case one of the show’s producers while surfing the net, comes upon my blog.

This painting is a portrait I have recently finished.  Jeannie is a lively, bright, kind and inquisitive young woman.  I hope I have portrayed some of those qualities in my painting of her.

This in an oil on canvas, 20×30″.

PITRE: back to T.O.

Benny Andersson-Bjorn Ulvaeus musical Kristina at Royal Albert Hall, show-stopping stage diva Louise Pitre got ‘stuck’ in London for an extra three days due to that pesky cloud of volcanic ash. “London’s not a bad place to be stuck in!” she adds, especially since her hubby Joe Matheson had taken a week’s holiday from his on-stage gig with still-thriving Jersey Boys to join her. Mamma Mia alumnus Pitre’s now home again, safe and sound and  shooting Season 2 of Star Portraits for Bravo! … popular public relations pro Shelagh O’Donnell is the ROM’s new Head Of Communications … George F. Walker’s hit comedy Featuring Loretta makes its second debut  to the Factory Theatre tonight, officially kicking off the Factory’s 40th (!!!) Anniversary celebrations. Longtime Walker cheerleader Ken Gass directs Monica Dottor, Lesley Faulker, Kevin Hanchard and Brandon McGibbon in this brand new production … and the bad news is, Yorkville haunt Michelle’s Brasserie, the café  in

FARMIGA: going outlaw

Renaissance Square just off Cumberland, has closed. Good news is, Crème, a new French bistro devised by Ricardo Sousa (Cibo, Lolo) and chef Ricardo Roque (Magna Golf Club, Bistro 990,) is now underway and is tentatively set to open June 1.

NO PEOPLE LIKE SHOW PEOPLE: Young Lily Collins, so good as Sandra Bullock‘s daughter in The Blind Side, is set to co-star with Taylor Lautner in Abduction, a new thriller … Kevin Bacon has signed on to guest star in Steve Carrell’s next project … Pedro Almodovar alumnus Antonio Banderas is set to star in the director’s next opus, La piel que habito … Up In The Air seductress Vera Farmiga

AGRON: new sci-fi role?

is set to portray a wild west outlaw in A Thousand Guns … watch for an announcement linking about-to-depart Global TV anchor Kevin Newman with a major new digital platform initiative … and don’t bother inviting Phil Collins to your Canada Day BBQ this year. He’s already booked to open the 44^th annual Monteux Jazz Festival with a special July 1 concert.

NO BIZ LIKE SHOW BIZ: Glee star Dianna Agron has signed on for  a leading role in the sci-fi film I Am Number Four … living room favourites Peter Mansbridge, Brian Stewart and Adrienne Arsenault are in London today, continuing to deliver CBC’s in-depth play-by-play of today’s General Elections in the U.K. …  Shia Labeouf is set to play Charlie in the dark comedy The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman … Mireille

JEAN-BAPTISTE: in Central Park

Enos (Big Love) is reportedly signed to star in AMC’s new series The Killing …  bright young things Emma Roberts and Freddie Highmore are set to co-star in a new indie feature, Homework … Nurse Jackie scene-stealer Anna Deavere Smith is taking her New York solo show Let Me Down Easy on the road. Hope she brings it here …  what becomes a legend most? Hard work. Which is howcum Ann Rhomer is still a household favourite after more than three decades on local TV. We’ll miss her after she exits CP24‘s morning show next month … and although you know her best from her role as an FBI agent in Without A Trace, did you know that Anthony LaPaglia sidekick  Marianne Jean-Baptiste was the first British black actress nominated for an Oscar, for Mike Leigh‘s 1996 drama Secrets & Lies?  Ah yes, how quickly we forget. The gifted Mme Jean-Baptiste is spending her summer vacation in rep with Al Pacino, performing Merchant Of Venice and The Winter’s Tale in Central Park..

TOMORROW:

All about Liona Boyd, Zero Mostel,

Piper Laurie (yes, Piper Laurie!) and more.

For years now we have been inundated by reality shows which spotlight “the arts”… and to no surprise. The reality of the increase in creativity on the earth recently is hard not to notice, so it is no surprise that shows like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance have been so widely celebrated and enjoyed. These shows are clearly filling a void desperately needing to be filled. All this fresh creativity is spilling over and it needs a stage. But as an artist, I have for a long time been perturbed by the fact that the fine arts, ie. visual arts, have been seriously lacking any sort of representation in the area of television and reality shows. Late night talk shows are another example of a type of programming that likes to think it has its finger on the pulse of popular culture, spotlighting celebrities from the music and acting industries (and more recently branching off to include politics and dancers). And yet there are famous artists out there – I speak here of visual artists – photographers, painters, sculptures and the like – who you never see being interviewed by Letterman or Conan. Now I don’t actually condone the glorification and idolization that these shows basically feed off of, but I’m using late shows simply as a means of making my point. When will fine arts begin to catch up and overflow the way dancing and music has?

Today as I was vegging on the couch and channel surfing, I caught my first glimmer of potential breakthrough when I stumbled upon a Canadian program called “Star Portraits”. The show takes three Canadian artists and gives them two-weeks to create a portrait of whoever the celebrity guest is. The episode I watched, featured figure skater Elvis Stojko. Future episodes will be featuring the likes of such Canadian well-knowns as Margaret Trudeau, Debby Travis, and Alex Trebek. They are given a few hours with the celebrity, to talk and get a feel for their personality, take photos, etc. At the end of the two weeks the three portraits are revealed and the celebrity must choose the winning portrait. Though the show still uses celebrity to hook audiences (to a degree – I’ll be honest that I didn’t know it was Elvis Stojko until near the end when the host said his name), it introduces us to canadian artists who – let’s face it – we otherwise wouldn’t know existed. There’s a plus there, but it would also be nice if unknown artists were featured (ala American Idol contestants), rather than artists who have been working in the art scene for several years already. I forgive this, because even Canadian artists who have worked in the art scene for many years are sadly underexposed in our society. Something else that could work even more to benefit the arts community would be if they gave a brief overview of each of the three artist’ past works. The artists are presumably chosen for their differing styles (which result in three very different but equally interesting portraits at the end of the show), so I think giving us a taste of their past work at the beginning of the show would help us identify with their individual styles in the show.

What I would praise more than anything about Star Portraits, is that the majority of the program is focused on walking through the creative process with each artist, from conception, to the application of paint, parafin wax, pastels, what have you. Each artists explains their process, what they are doing and why, and how that process will produce the desired effect for the finished work. Since all artists work differently, for me it was exciting and stimulating to watch them at work and see the pieces come to life. It may not have the flash and pizzaz of 25 year old dancers in skin tight costumes, or the sadistic hilarity of watching some young singer’s hopes and dreams get crushed when his voice cracks in the wrong part of a remake of your favourite top-40 hit, but those who place value on the creative process of the visual arts and don’t require theme songs featuring electric guitar to keep them interested may find something worth savouring in Star Portraits.

Dates and times listed at: http://www.starportraits.ca/

Ashley Macisaac

Elvis Stojko

Measha Brueggergosman

Debby Travis

600 Markham St (Bloor & Bathurst) 416-795-2787 http://www.spencegallery.com

When you walk into Spence Gallery, there is a stunning painting of Opal’s on the back wall. You need to see it in person to get the full effect.

http://www.spencegallery.com/exhibitions/index.html

Opal was recently featured on BRAVO! TV’s STAR PORTRAITS.

In each 30-minute episode, three Canadian painters are brought together to paint the same celebrity’s portrait. With the clock ticking, the artists have mere hours to get to know their subject. After meeting their celebrity muse, the artists are left with only two weeks to create their masterpieces. When the clock runs out, the paintings are revealed to the celebrity sitter, who must choose only one portrait to add to their personal collection.

The BRAVO! TV episode can be viewed here: http://www.bravo.ca/television/star-portraits/episodes.asp