In January 2005, Brian was awarded the title of “Honourary Drawing Master” by the Drawing Society of Canada. Gerritt Verstraete, co-founder of the Drawing Society, noted that to receive this honour, an artist must “demonstrate a substantial commitment to drawing as well as mastery of drawing techniques. They have developed a body of work that positions drawings as complete works in themselves and not just preparatory work or ‘studies’ for paintings. A Canadian drawing master is an artist who loves to draw, who draws well, who is comfortable in one or any number of styles and who has spent many years creating drawings that in turn have become valuable contributions to Canada’s overall artistic heritage.” Previous inductees have included Robert Bateman, Peter Mah, Eric Freifeld and Ken Danby. See www.drawingsociety.com for details.
Brian was named “Artist of the Month” for November 2008 by American Artist magazine. To read the article from American Artist click here. Brian was also a featured artist on the television program Star Portraits which aired in the Fall of 2009 on Bravo!. Check out their websites for further information: www.bravo.ca and www.starportraits.ca
Brian has taught classes and workshops on life drawing, portraiture and figurative abstraction for over 20 years and has been on the faculty of the Ontario College of Art and Design, The Koffler Centre for the Arts, Haliburton School of The Arts, Curry’s Art School, Visual Arts Mississauga and Neilson Park Creative Centre as well as conducting Master Classes in his own studio. Brian is currently accepting portrait commissions and gallery inquiries as well as workshop engagements. You can read his full bio by clicking here.
You can contact Brian by email at: briansmith.aoca@gmail.com
