Painter retires after 40 years of teaching
By Sophia Fischer
sfischer@theacorn.com

Michael Ward and Celeste Frederickson

Local art students said goodbye to longtime teacher Michael Ward, who recently retired from the oil painting program he’s taught in the Conejo Valley for more than 40 years.

Ward’s Agoura Hills studio will now be run by his granddaughter Celeste Frederickson of Thousand Oaks.

"I figured after 40 years it was time to pass it on to the next generation. It’s all been wonderful, but I probably held on to it too long as it was," Ward said.

Currently, more than 100 students come to the Michael Ward Studio to master the art of putting oil to canvas.

Thousands of Ward’s students have pursued art careers, according to Frederickson. Some have even opened their own studios.

One student went on to become a landscape architect, another is working for a Westlake artist designing sunglasses.

"His way of teaching technique is good. He taught me the value of art," said Amanda Sapirstein, 13, of Oak Park, who’s taken lessons with Ward since she was 5 years old.

Although he loved visiting museums and art galleries as a child, Ward didn’t begin painting until he was in his 30s.

First, he joined the Army at age 16, and his eight years of service included heading up the staff of the Paris office of NATO, under the direction of then-General Dwight Eisenhower. While in Paris, Ward pursued his interest in art, visiting the Louvre and observing many of his artist friends at work.

After his military service he spent 10 years in the entertainment business, including a stint as a writer on the "Donna Reed Show." It was during this time that he began taking painting lessons.

When medical issues forced him to leave his entertainment job and find something less stressful, he turned to painting as his new vocation.

"He was good at it and people started asking him to teach them," Frederickson said.

In 1963, Ward began teaching oil painting out of his garage in Chatsworth. He eventually opened studios in Chatsworth, in Northridge and in the shopping center across the street from Jungleland, where the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza now stands.

In 1983, he moved to the current Agoura Hills location off Reyes Adobe. His granddaughter, who started painting when she was 6, was one of his students.

In 1985, Frederickson began working at the studio after a rare blood disease forced her to return home from college.

"It’s always been just him and I, until my first maternity leave. But now he wants to enjoy his life and not work it away," Frederickson said. "I’m excited to be able to take over the family business and carry his name."

For now, Frederickson says she doesn’t plan to make any changes. Eventually she would like to renovate the studio and she’s thinking about running a summer camp.

For Ward, retirement means he’ll be keeping busy with other things. He’ll continue to teach one class each week, but he would like to write several books on the technique and theory of oil painting.

"I’m really thrilled to be passing the studio on to Celeste," Ward said. "My first full day off I didn’t quite know what to do. It will take a little adjusting."