Ryan Benjamin
Expertise: Comics
Worked for Image Comics, DC, Marvel
Collaborated on Batman Beyond, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Superman, Black Panther
Top selling book: Brothers Bond
Jordu Schell
Expertise: Sculpture and concept design
Worked on films such as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Avatar, Planet of the Apes
Designed the Emmy award-winning creature for Babylon 5-The Series
Mark Westermoe
Expertise: Drawing and illustration
Film posters for Braveheart, Total Recall, Home Alone
Heather Lenefsky
Expertise: Painting and illustration, specializing in pet portraits
Studied at The Watts Atelier of the Arts
Joe Weatherly
Joe Weatherly
Expertise: Drawing and painting animals
Taught at Nickelodeon Animation, DreamWorks Animation, Universal Studios, Art Center College of Design
Author of The Weatherly Guide to Drawing Animals, Animal Essence: The Art of Joe Weatherly, Joe Weatherly Sketchbook Volume 1
Charles Hu
Expertise: Figure painting; character, mural, and comic book design
Cofounder of 3Kicks Fine Art Studio
Instructor at: ArtCenter College of Design, Laguna College of Art and Design, Gnomon—School of Visual Effects, Games & Animation
Worked as an illustrator for the film, End of the Spear
Michael Mattesi
Expertise: Drawing, illustration, entertainment art
Worked on The Lion King
Worked for Microsoft, Origin, and Electronic Arts
Creator and Author of the FORCE Drawing Method
Joseph Altwer
Expertise: Figure painting and landscape painting
Taught at The Florence Academy of Art, and at the Barcelona Academy of Art
Michael Siegel
Expertise: Painting and drawing
Studied under David A Leffel
Taught at LAAFA, The Art Students League of New York, and the Barcelona Academy of Art
David Simon
Expertise: Sculpture
Created maquettes and sculptures for films, such as: Watchmen, Fantastic Four, and Where the Wild Things Are
Juliette Aristides
Expertise: Figure drawing and painting, still-life, and interiors
Founder of Classical Atelier at Gage Academy of Fine Art
Author of several art instruction books, including Classical Drawing Atelier and Classical Painting Atelier
Ed Fraughton
Expertise: Sculpture
Member of National Academy of Western Art, National Sculpture Society, and Utah Westerners
Commissions: Mormon Battalion Monument in San Diego, Spirit of Wyoming in Cheyenne, Wyoming
Steve Huston
Expertise: Drawing, painting, anatomy, and composition
Taught at: Disney, Warner Brothers, DreamWorks Studios, Blizzard Entertainment, Art Center College of Design
Featured in: Art News, American Art Collector, Harper’s Bazaar
Glenn Vilppu
Expertise: Drawing, painting, composition, and animation
Founder of Vilppu Academy
Taught at Walt Disney Studios, Marvel Productions, Warner Bros
Iliya Mirochnik
Expertise: Figure drawing and painting
Teaches at Ringling College of Art and Design
First place winner of the American Portrait Society’s 2013 International Portrait Competition
Chris Legaspi
Expertise: Figure drawing and painting
Commissions for Warner Bros. Pictures, Marvel, and Netflix
Teaches workshops at several top schools in Los Angeles
Stephen Bauman
Expertise: Drawing, Painting
Taught at Florence Academy of Art
Former Director of Anatomy & Ecorche in Sweden and USA
Daxiong Guo
Expertise: Comics, illustration, and animation
Worked for: Star Wars – Dark Horse, DC, and WildStorm
Founded Flag Art Studios
Joshua Jacobo
Art focus: Figurative Drawing, Sculpting, Anatomy
Founder and Director of New Masters Academy
Tina Orsolic Dalessio
Expertise: Drawing, Painting
Studied at Florence Academy of Art
Taught at the University of Zagreb
Fei Meng
Expertise: Portraiture and Illustration
Exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists and the Federation of British Artists
Moritz Moser
Expertise: Wood and Stone Sculpture
Studied stone and wood carving in Italy
Teaches at HTL Hallein in Salzburg, Austria
Marc Dalessio
Expertise: Portrait and Landscape Painting
Taught at Florence Academy of Art and Charles H. Cecil Studios
Michal Suffczynski
Expertise: Watercolor and Architecture
Studied Architecture at Warsaw University of Technology and the University of Detroit Mercy
Teaches at Warsaw University of Technology
Renae Wang
Expertise: Figure and landscape oil painting
Teacher at Laguna College of Art and Design
Studied at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art, and Laguna College of Art and Design
Bill Perkins
Expertise: Art direction, animation, drawing, and composition
Worked on films such as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Academy Award-winning Aladdin
Worked for: Walt Disney Feature Animation, Warner Bros., DreamWorks, and Industrial Lights & Magic
Matt Duckett
Expertise: Figure Painting and Illustration
Teacher at Laguna College of Art and Design and Kline Academy
Studied at Laguna College of Art and Design
Hollis Dunlap
Expertise: Drawing and painting
Held numerous solo shows in New York, Boston, San Francisco, and Miami
Teaches at Lyme Art Association, Old Lyme, Connecticut
Cornelia Hernes
Expertise: Drawing, Painting
Studied at Florence Academy of Art and Odd Nerdrum
Taught at Florence Academy of Art Italy and US
Catherine Bobkoski
Art Focus: Still Life and Figurative Painting
10 years of teaching experience
Studied at Watts Atelier, Grand Central Academy, and New York University
Louise Gasca
Expertise: Tradition tattoos
Graduated from the University of Hertfordshire and has a post-graduate teaching qualification
Apprenticed at Body Art and Soul in Los Angeles. Shows artwork at LagunaART and the San Clemente Art Show
Jason Arkles
Art Focus: Figurative Sculpting
Author of “Sculpting From Life”, “On Sculpture by Leon Battista Alberti”
Large scale sculpture features on the façade of Saint Mark’s English Church
Stapleton Kearns
Art Focus: Landscape Painting
Teaches workshops across the country
Received awards from the Rockport Art Association, The Guild of Boston Artists, and American Artists Association
Leo Mancini-Hresko
Art Focus: Drawing, Painting
Taught at Florence Academy of Art
Held numerous solo and group shows in the US, Greece, England, Italy, Ireland, Russia
Joseph Todorovitch
Art Focus: Figurative and Portrait Painting
Teaches at Laguna College of Art and Design
Robert Bodem
Art Focus: Sculpting
Former Director of Sculpture Department at Florence Academy of Art
Founder of Athens Sculpture Atelier; Author of “Drawing In Space”
Amy Florence
Art Focus: Figurative and Still Life Painting
Founder of Studio Donatello
Studied and taught at Charles H. Cecil Studios, Florence, Italy
Johanna Schwaiger
Art Focus: Figurative Sculpting and Drawing
Taught at HTL Hallein, Salzburg, Austria, and Fine Art Center Sag Harbour, New York
Collaborated on the largest Mahatma Gandhi Memorial in Mumbai, India
Michal Kuś
Art Focus: Concept Artist, Illustrator
Worked for Disney Interactive, EA Games, Marvel, Red Bull, and Jellyfish Pictures
Co-founder of Focal Point School
Miles Yoshida
Art Focus: Drawing, Inking, Sculpting
Exhibited at The Lodge Gallery in New York City in 2016
George Pratt
Art Focus: Comics, Drawing, and Painting
Graphic novel: Enemy Ace: War Idyll, nominated for Eisner Award and Harvey Award
Teaches at Ringling College of Art and Design, and Illustration Academy in Kansas City, Mo.
Marshall Lee Toomey
Art Focus: Animation, Clean-up Animation
Works at Disney and Filmation Studios
Collaborated on “Beauty and the Beast”, “Aladdin”, “The Lion King”, “Mulan”, “Tarzan”, etc.
Larissa Marantz
Art Focus: Illustrator, Animator, Cartoonist
Worked as a Character Designer for Nickelodeon’s Rocket Power and Rugrats TV shows
Owner of OC Art Studios; 12 years of teaching at Laguna College of Art + Design
Michael Cedeno
Expertise: Animation, character design
Worked on Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Oil Spot and Lipstick, Oliver & Co., Pocahontas
Teaches at Otis College of Art and Design
Kathleen Quaife-Hodge
Expertise: Visual effects animation
Worked at Disney, Bluth Group, and Warner Bros
Collaborated on The Fox and the Hound, Pocahontas, Hercules, Tarzan, Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers
Ben Fenske
Art Focus: Drawing, Painting
Featured on American Artist Magazine as one of the Best 25 Living Artists in 2012
Gary Meyer
Expertise: Painting and illustration
Taught at Art Center College of Design for 23 years
Film illustration for Star Wars, Jaws, The Thing
Sheldon Borenstein
Expertise: Drawing and animation
Founder and Director of Sheldon’s Art Academy
Worked on films such as: Space Jam, Tom and Jerry, and FernGully: The Last Rainforest
James Stewart
Expertise: Sculpture and creature design
Worked on films such as The Chronicles of Narnia, Shrek 2, Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix, and District 9
Kamille Corry
Expertise: Figure painting
Founder and Director of the Corry Studio of Figurative Art, Vice President of the Academy of Classical Design
First Place winner of the 2018 Boston Figure Painting Competition at the Academy of Realist Art
Carlos Huante
Expertise: Creature and character design
Worked as a concept artist on films such as Skull Island, Blade Runner: 2049, and Dune (2021)
Received the ADG Excellence in Production Design Award for his contributions to Blade Runner 2049
Danny Galieote
Expertise: Painting and animation
Lead character animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios for 12 years
Taught at Art Center College of Design, and at Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art
Eric Michael Wilson
Expertise: Sculpture and anatomy
Creator of Anatomy Tools educational sculptures
Taught at Industrial Light & Magic, and at Pixar
Erik Olson
Expertise: Painting and illustration
Professor at College for Creative Studies (CCS) in Detroit
Illustration commissions: Walt Disney Company, Universal Pictures, and Dungeons & Dragons Inc
Rey Bustos
Expertise: Anatomy, drawing, and sculpture
Teaches at: Art Center College of Design, California State University, Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, Disney Feature Animation
Matt Lewis
Expertise: Sculpture
Studied at The Savannah College of Art and Design
Works with Ward Sculptural Arts Foundry in Canton, Georgia
Karl Gnass
Expertise: Figure and animal drawing, and storyboarding
Taught at: Disney Feature Animation, Disney Television Animation, DreamWorks
Storyboard artist for Peter Pan and the Pirates, Gargoyles, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid
John Asaro
Expertise: Figure painting
Taught at Art Center College of Design
Created the original “Planes of the Head” mannequin
Ellen Eagle
Expertise: Pastel portrait painting
Teaches at The Art Students League of New York
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New Masters Academy
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