Landscape by Ben Long

The Van Winkle Law Firm commissioned world-renowned artist Ben Long to paint the above landscape in honor of the Firm's centennial. The view represents the scenic beauty and natural wonders that drew Kingsland Van Winkle to the area, and brought North Carolina native back to the area at the turn of the 20th century.

The artwork was unveiled at the Firm's centennial celebration on May 15, 2007.

To view samples of Ben Long's work, visit www.benlongfineart.com.

About Ben Long

One of the art community's most renowned fresco artists, Asheville resident Ben Long, has works in distinguished places around the world. In the United States, his frescoes include the dome at the TransAmerica building and St. Peter's Catholic Church in Charlotte, as well as several western North Carolina churches west of Charlotte. In Buncombe County, his "Parable of the Prodigal Son", located in Montreat College's Chapel of the Prodigal, employs the 'true fresco' style used centuries ago in the Sistine Chapel. He also has works in private and public collections in cities such as Florence, Italy; London, England; Paris, France; San Francisco;
Miami; and Washington, D.C.

Long's artistic career began when he was a young man studying creative writing with Reynolds Price at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He then went to New York, where he became a member of the Art Students League and studied under the guidance of such notable artists as Robert Beverly Hale and Frank Mason. Long served two tours of duty in Vietnam as a Marine Combat Officer; serving as Head of the Combat Art Team during his final tour. Much of his work from that period is now on display at the Smithsonian Institute of Washington, D.C.

After Vietnam, Long traveled to Florence, Italy, where he was apprenticed to Maestro Pietro Annigoni for eight years. When his apprenticeship culminated in 1976, he was awarded the prestigious Leonardo da Vinci International Art Award. Long has completed several frescoes in Italy, including a joint fresco with Annigoni and the only work by a non-Italian at the Abbey of Montecassino.

A master of fine art in every sense of the word, Ben Long is also an accomplished oil painter and sketch artist. In the classical style of da Vinci sketches, Long's drawings capture each beautiful line of the human form. His portraits, nudes, and landscapes in oil are lifelike, causing the viewer to pause and consider just what the subject was thinking at the moment in which they are captured. He uses only live models for his work regardless of the medium in which he chooses. In addition to a lifetime's work, Long teaches his techniques to students in the classical tradition at his school, the Fine Arts League of Asheville.