This biography from the Archives of AskART:
|  For more than half a century, the illustrations and paintings of Harold Von Schmidt were familiar to the American public. His work appeared in the Saturday Evening Post, Sunset, Cosmopolitan, American and other magazines for 20 years, beginning in 1925.
He also illustrated Willa Cather's novel, Death Comes to the Archbishop, and was commissioned in 1960 to design the Pony Express commemorative stamp for the United States postal service.
Born in 1893 in Alameda, California, Von Schmidt was orphaned at five. He was raised by his grandfather and an aunt who encouraged his interest in art. As a young man, he spent his summers working as a lumberjack, cowpuncher and construction worker.
After two years' study with F.H. Meyers at the California College of Arts and Crafts*, Von Schmidt did his first cover design in 1913 for Sunset magazine. While attending the San Francisco Art Institute* from 1915 to 1918, he became art director at the Foster and Klein advertising agency. He also made paintings for the Navy in World War I.
Von Schmidt was a member of the United States rugby team in the 1920 Olympics. That year, he and artists Maynard Dixon, Roi Partridge, Judson Starr and Fred Ludekens set up their own agency. He came East in 1924 to study at the Grand Central School of Art* in New York City with Harvey Dunn, a former student of Howard Pyle.
During World War II, Von Schmidt was an artist-correspondent for King Features Syndicate and the air force.
He continued to produce non-commercial work, as well as illustrations. He did twelve paintings of the Gold Rush for the California governor's offices, and 5 Civil War paintings for the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York.
Harold Von Schmidt was a founder of the Famous Artists School* in Westport, Connecticut.
He died in 1982.
Von Schmidt was a member of the Artists Guild, Artists Guild of the Author's League of America, and Society of Illustrators*. His work may be seen at the California State Capitol, Sacramento; Montana Historical Society, Helena; National Cowboy Hall of Fame, Oklahoma City; United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs; and the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York.
Source:
Michael David Zellman, Three Hundred Years of American Art
* For more in-depth
information about these terms and others, see AskART.com Glossary
http://www.askart.com/AskART/lists/Art_Definition.aspx
| |
This biography from the Archives of AskART:
|  For more than half a century, the illustrations and paintings of Harold
Von Schmidt were familiar to the American public. His work appeared in
the Saturday Evening Post, Sunset, Cosmopolitan, American and other
magazines for 20 years, beginning in 1925. He also illustrated Willa
Cather's novel Death Comes to the Archbishop and was commissioned in 1960
to design the Pony Express commemorative stamp for the United States
Postal Service.
Born in 1893 in Alameda, California, Von
Schmidt was orphaned at five. He was raised by his grandfather and an
aunt, who encouraged his interest in art. As a young man, he spent his
summers working as a lumberjack, cowpuncher and construction worker.
After two years' study with F.H. Meyers at the California College of
Arts and Crafts, Von Schmidt did his first cover design in 1913 for
Sunset Magazine. While attending the San Francisco Art Institute from
1915 to 1918 he became art director at the Foster and Klein advertising
agency. He also made paintings for the U.S. Navy in World War I.
Von Schmidt
was a member of the United States rugby team in the 1920 Olympics. That
year, he and artists Maynard Dixon, Roi Partridge, Judson Starr and
Fred Ludekens set up their own agency. He went east in 1924 to study at
the Grand Central Art School in New York City with Harvey Dunn, a
former student of Howard Pyle. He continued to produce noncommercial
work, as well as illustrations. He did 12 Gold Rush paintings for the
California governor's offices, and five Civil War paintings for the
United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Von Schmidt was
a founder of the Famous Artists School in Westport, Connecticut.
He
died in 1982.
Source:
Glacier Gallery
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This biography from the Archives of AskART:
|  Harold
Von Schmidt was born on May 19, 1893 in Alameda, California. The son of
a clipper ship captain and an Australian dancer, Von Schmidt was
orphaned at five years of age. His grandfather who had been a
Forty-Niner raised him.
He began his art studies at the College
of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California, primarily inspired by the
works of Remington and Russell. He then spent three years at the San
Francisco Art Institute while studying privately with Maynard Dixon and
Worth Ryder. During his teenage years, Von Schmidt worked as a cowboy
and lumberjack. He possessed athletic talents as he competed in the
1920 Olympics as a member of the American rugby team.
In 1924,
he moved to New York City where he studied with Harvey Dunn at the
Grand Central Art School. He became a well-known illustrator for
western subjects for such magazines a Saturday Evening Post and
Colliers. After 1930, he co-founded and taught at the Famous Artists
School in his resident town of Westport, Connecticut. In 1960 he was
commissioned to design the postage stamp commemorating the Pony Express.
His
works are shown at the West Point Naval Academy, as well as the
Governor's office in Sacramento, California (twelve paintings of the
California Rush, 1849), the Montana Historical Society, and the
National Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Harold Von Schmidt died in 1982, in Westport.
Source:
Edan Hughes, "Artists in California, 1786-1940"
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Biography from Altermann Galleries and Auctioneers, V:
| Harold von Schmidt (1893-1982) was an American illustrator who specialized in magazine interior illustrations. Born in Alameda, California in 1893, he was orphaned at the age of five. After a year in an orphanage, he went to live with his grandfather, who had been a forty-niner.
As a youth von Schmidt worked as a cowhand and a construction worker. In 1920 and 1924 he was on the United States Olympic Rugby team. Although the United States team won the gold medal both years, von Schmidt did not play in the only game in 1920, and was sidelined by an injury in the final practice in 1924.
Von Schmidt began his art studies at the California School of Arts and Crafts while he was still in high school. In 1924 he moved to New York City and entered the Grand Central School of Art. In 1927 he married and moved to Westport, Connecticut.
Harold von Schmidt's work appeared primarily in Collier's Weekly, Cosmopolitan (magazine), Liberty (magazine), The Saturday Evening Post and Sunset (magazine).
Although he preferred magazine work and illustrated few books, he spent two years preparing sixty illustrations for a deluxe edition of Willa Cather's novel, Death Comes for the Archbishop. In 1948 he was recruited by Albert Dorne to be one of the founding faculty for the Famous Artists School. He was awarded the first gold medal by the trustees of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1968.
Source: www.wikipedia.com |
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Harold von Schmidt is also mentioned in these AskART essays:
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