St. Lucy Painting

Matthew Adelberg is a realist figure painter living in Baltimore, Maryland. Adelberg’s fine arts education began his junior year of high-school, when he transferred to Carver Center for Arts and Technology. Following his junior year, he studied painting in Colorado and abroad in Italy. In Italy, he first encountered the Baroque era artist Caravaggio, whose philosophy on naturalism and realism has had a drastic impact on Adelberg’s work to this day. In 2015, In the summer of 2014 he was chosen to learn from, live with, and be the apprentice of the famed figure painter Odd Nerdrum in Norway. Adelberg has since developed relationships with the Wyeth family, and has been influenced heavily by Andrew Wyeth’s naturalism. Adelberg’s work has received numerous awards, including the prestigious international Elizabeth Greenshields’ grant, and he has shown his work in a multitude of places including New York, Florida, Colorado, Massachusetts, Israel, Italy, and Norway. Adelberg’s work has been reviewed in numerous magazines and publications. Adelberg firmly believes that one must paint what they know, thus his imagery is inspired by his childhood experiences, faith, and the mortality of those closest to him. Adelberg considers himself to be an autobiographical artist, shedding light on issues of violence, faith, mortality, and morality, and his paintings tell stories and express feelings as both a form of self-exploration and catharsis. Adelberg received his B.F.A. degree in Painting and Art History at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), focusing his attention almost exclusively on painting the figure, and his Masters of Arts in Teaching in 2016. He is currently represented by the Peter Marcelle Project in both South-Hampton and Manhattan, New York. Adelberg was named a Master of American Realism in 2015.