Richard Schmid
Showroom
Richard Schmid was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1934 where he received his education. He was influenced by his grandfather, Julian Oates, an Architectural Sculptor, and began drawing, and anatomy began at the age of twelve and at fourteen, he studied under landscape painter Gianni Cilfone, who helped him refine his painting skills and introduced him to color theory.
A milestone in Schmid’s development came in 1952 when he entrolled at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. There he learned the classical techniques of the early Dutch, Flemish, and Spanish masters from William H. Mosby, who had studied at the Royal Academy in the 1920’s and later at the Superior Institute in Antwerp. Mosby was a technical expert on European and American realism and taught Schmid everything he knew about the late nineteenth century Italian, French, Slavic, Scandinavian, and American Painters. The emphasis in all periods was on Alla Prima or Direct Painting systems of the time. Fidelity to perception of the subject at the moment of painting was set as the goal of Direct Painting. Extreme accuracy and speed were developed and Schmid’s individual style and techniques emerged as a consequence.
Developed over many years, Schmid’s current methods can be identified technically by a characteristic precision of draftsmanship and lavish color. The content of his painting derives mainly from his personal experiences and convictions. He views painting as a unique form of language. Very early in his career, Schmid rejected abstraction as an ineffective method of communication. He chose instead the symbolism inherent in realism to convey his ideas. Schmid draws upon his interest in music, history, philosophy, teaching, traveling, and personal relationships for his subject matter.
After military service, Schmid moved to New York in 1958 where he painted and exhibited for two years before moving his studio to western Connecticut. There he married, and settled down to raise a family, and pursue his creative ideas. During this time he traveled and painted extensively throughout the United States, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and parts of Europe.
Then, after a seve year reunion with his hometown of Chicago, Schmid moved to Colorado in 1991. He currently resides in Southern Vermont with his wife the talented painted, Nancy Guzik. Schmid says the peaceful setting affords him the opportunity to paint still lifes, landscapes, and figures exclusively from life. In his painting and teaching, Schmid has championed the idea of working directly from nature using techniques that allow the artist to capture both the color and the detail of a subject in one sitting.
During his distinguished career, Schmid has influenced thousands of artists by his writing, teaching, and artwork. He has long been recognized as a master of direct alla prima painting. He is the author of two previous books published by Watson Guptill in 1971 and 1973.
Both books became best sellers as well as standard textbooks in the United States. His first volume on landscape, painting, was summarized in an August 1971 article in American Artist magazine, and his 1973 book on painting the nude, sold 250,000 copies in China. Unfortunately, this book was reproduced without his permission.
His latest volume entitled, ALLA PRIMA- Everything I Know About Painting, was first published in 1998 by Stove Prairie PressTM. The third printing and newly revised edition was published in November of 1999. Alla Prima has been sold to artists in 33 countries throughout the world as well as to painters, collectors, libraries, and museums in America.
Since 1958 Richard Schmid has won nearly every major art award in the United States, including the John Singer Sargent Medal for Lifetime Achievement from the American Society of Portrait Artists Foundation and the American Watercolor gold medal. In 1987, he was honored with the $100,000 National Arts in the Parks award for his oil painting, “Rocky Mountain National Park – Mountain Stream”. The painting is featured on the first official 1988 National Park Stamp. In recent years, Schmid has conducted an on-going series of lecture demonstrations and has established art scholarships from the proceeds.
Richard Schmid has had fifty one person shows including a major retrospective at the Thomas Gilcrease Museum of Art. His works have been acquired by important private and museum collections nationwide and his work has been a part of group exhibitions in the United States and China.
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