Focus on the Masters: A Conversation with Astrid Preston

Focus on the Masters continues its residency at the Museum of Ventura County with artist Astrid Preston, a recipient of the NEA Fellowship Grant in 1987 whose work is on display in many public and private collections, including the McNay Art Museum, UCLA Hammer Museum, Oakland Museum, and more.

Astrid Preston has been called “one of America’s most important contemporary landscape painters.” She joins a love for Renaissance and Chinese/Japanese art with the emotions and feelings she has for nature. The resulting landscape is ultimately a reflection of her internal expression. She received a B.A in English Literature from UCLA and received an NEA Fellowship Grant and an artist residency from Lux Art Institute. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the United States and Asia, and has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Art in America and ArtForum. For more information on Astrid Preston, visit www.AstridPreston.com

RSVP at www.FocusOnTheMasters.com or call 805.653.2501

Focus on the Masters (FOTM) is a non-profit, 501(c)(3), art appreciation program that documents, preserves and presents the works and lives of accomplished contemporary artists. We emphasize the importance of the arts to a healthy society. Our archive includes oral histories, videotaped interviews, photographic portraits and examples of the artists’ work. We incorporate our research into community outreach projects including our cross-curricular in-school program, Learning To See. FOTM is the only biographical resource project of its kind in the country. The documentation, consisting of visual, written and oral history, is comprised of multiple projects linked by a common mission. The goal of FOTM is to demonstrate the full significance of the arts to society by bringing highly accomplished artists to the forefront of the community.