Originally from Australia, Andrea J, Smith has studied and taught in the U.S. and Europe, and now lives in Rome where she founded and directs Atelier Canova.

In addition to studies at the Florence Academy of Art, where she later became an instructor in drawing, she studied in the U.S. with Michael Aviano, Michael Grimaldi and Nelson Shanks; and co-founded the Harlem Studio of Art with Judy Kudlow.

Smith’s atelier emphasizes classical art training in still life, portrait, figure and landscape painting, and you will find a few examples of her work in those areas in the description of the areas of study.

On her own website, you will find sections for still life, figurative and landscape, with an emphasis on still life.

Her commend of value, color and texture give her still life compositions a wonderful sense of harmony and unity, within which she conjures an almost Chardin-like sense of silent contemplation.

In both her landscape and figurative works, you can also see her dedication to the classical traditions of European painting.

Herbert James Draper was a late Victorian / early 20th century artist who specialized for much of his career in mythological subjects.

His most famous painting, The Lament for Icarus (above, top with detail) is in the Tate (high-resolution version on Google Art Project and Wikimedia Commons).

Earlier in his career he was an illustrator. As the popularity of his mythological and literary subjects, and his classical Victorian approach to painting, waned in his later career, he turned more to portraiture.

[Note: some images on the sites linked could be considered NSFW]