Semyon Bilmes is an Azerbaijani-American painter and the founder and master instructor of The Ashland Academy of Art

The Ashland Academy of Art

The Ashland Academy of Art was an art school located in Ashland, Oregon, United States. The Ashland Academy of Art was a classically based, independent school. The Academy's program was mainly based on the Russian Academic System...

, in Ashland, Oregon

Ashland, Oregon

Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, near Interstate 5 and the California border, and located in the south end of the Rogue Valley. It was named after Ashland County, Ohio, point of origin of Abel Helman and other founders, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other...

, United States.

Bilmes has achieved national recognition as an advertising, editorial, and book illustrator. Bilmes has illustrated campaigns for AT&T

AT&T

AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...

, CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

, General Mills

General Mills

General Mills, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 corporation, primarily concerned with food products, which is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The company markets many well-known brands, such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Colombo, Totinos, Jeno's, Pillsbury, Green...

, Warner Lambert, Smirnoff Vodka, Citibank

Citibank

Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services giant Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York...

, Clairol

Clairol

Clairol is a personal care products division of Procter & Gamble. The Clairol company was started in 1931 by Lawrence M. Gelb and wife, Joan, who named their enterprise after a hair-coloring preparation they found while traveling in France....

, Western Union

Western Union

The Western Union Company is a financial services and communications company based in the United States. Its North American headquarters is in Englewood, Colorado. Up until 2006, Western Union was the best-known U.S...

, Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines is an airline based in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, Washington in the United States. The airline originated in 1932 as McGee Airways. After many mergers with and acquisitions of other airlines, including Star Air Service, it became known as Alaska Airlines in 1944...

, and Philip Morris

Philip Morris USA

Philip Morris USA is the United States tobacco division of Altria Group, Inc. Philip Morris USA brands include Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Benson and Hedges, Merit, Parliament, Alpine, Basic, Cambridge, Bucks, Dave's, Chesterfield, Collector's Choice, Commander, English Ovals, Lark, L&M, Players and...

. His work can be found on the covers of books and periodicals such as Reader's Digest and the New York Times. His oil painting

Oil painting

Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...

, "Lady in a red Turban", was on the cover of the annual directory of top illustrators and designers in the country, American Showcase.

Life

Semyon Bilmes was born August 29, 1955 in Baku

Baku

Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...

, Azerbaijan SSR. Bilmes' art education started when he was a child in youth classes where he studied basic fundamentals of drawing. When he reached the age of sixteen he attended the A. Azim-Zade Academy of Art in Baku (USSR) where he was trained in the Russian Academic System. Bilmes' immigrated to New York in 1980 where he also graduated from the Parsons School of Design.

As a successful artist, understanding the need for classical art education, Bilmes founded the Bilmes Art School, where for ten years he taught art with a commercial emphasis.

Blimes later acquired and renovated a large building in Ashland, Oregon for The Ashland Academy of Art. In 2010, Semyon with his family moved to Maui where they opened Atelier Maui. Semyon is currently teaching at Atelier Maui. .

Semyon Bilmes lives on Maui with his wife and two of his four children.