The Grammy Awards Charity Auction Benefiting MusiCares, presented by Julien's Auctions and broadcast live on AuctionNetwork.com, includes the opportunity to bid to win a one-hour art lesson with Grammy Award-winning legend, Tony Bennett. In addition to his extraordinary career in music, Bennett is also a very talented and well respected artist. He received formal training as an art student at the School of Industrial Arts (now known as the School of Art and Design) in Manhattan and his paintings have been exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the world. According to the lot description, the winner of the auction will be accompanied by the renowned portrait painter Everett Raymond Kinstler. The lesson will take place in New York City. The estimated range for this item is $4,000 to $6,000, however I wouldn’t be surprised if it sold for more. You can bid for this item at eBay.

The live auction is being held in conjunction with 2008 MusiCares Person Of The Year Tribute to Aretha Franklin at the Los Angeles Convention Center on February 8, 2008. The auction, which consists of 80 lots of celebrity memorabilia and VIP experiences, includes such rare items as an acoustic guitar played by Kurt Cobain as a child, and a saxophone signed by Bill Clinton.

Other celebrity art items included in the auction are a limited edition signed print of "A Tribute To Ahmet" by Ronnie Wood, created for use in the December 10, 2007 Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert, and an original drawing by David Lee Roth.

See the Pop Life Art homepage for links to the artwork of Tony Bennett, Ronnie Wood and other celebrity artists.

(See related Blog Entry: Tony Bennett: A Life of Art and Music, March 17, 2007.)