At the apex of his long and distinguished career during which he has achieved the honor of winning nearly every major art award in the United States, including the Medal of Honor fromthe prestigious Salmagundi Club of New York City, the $100,000 National Arts for the Parks award, and the John Singer Sargent Medal for Lifetime Achievement–Richard Schmid still experiences every new painting as a process of discovery.

Says Schmid, “I seek what I love about a subject and try to convey it honestly. As I have grown as an artist, I have found I have the capacity to see more. The more I see, the more I find to paint, and the more I wish to convey on canvas. It’s an unstoppable sequence. “And that’s the adventure.”

Born in Chicago in 1934, Schmid was fortunate to have a series of teachers who taught him classical techniques, in what is known as “The Grand Manner.” At age 12, he began his studies in landscape painting, figure drawing, and anatomy. Later, he attended Chicago’s American Academy of Art where he was greatly influenced by teacher William H. Mosby. Mosby, a graduate of the Belgian Royal Academy in Brussels and the Superior Institute in Antwerp, was a technical expert on European and American realism. Studies with him involved working exclusively from life, at first using the conceptual and technical methods of the Flemish, Dutch, and Spanish masters, and eventually all of the late 19th century European and American painters. The emphasis in each period was on Alla Prima, or Direct Painting systems of the various periods. In 1998, Schmid published a book by the same name, "Alla Prima: Everything I Know About Painting,” which has received international acclaim and is currently in its tenth printing.

Throughout the second-half of the Twentieth Century when representational art was out of vogue, Schmid kept alive the knowledge he received from Mosby and from Mosby’s circle of luminaries that included Sargent, Monet, and Degas. A gifted teacher himself, Schmid has generously shared this knowledge through his books and through his mentoring of young artists. Today, he believes we’re entering a new Golden Age of representational art. Explains Schmid, “It’s been like watching a rocket launch. At first the rocket appears to be going slowly, but quickly it picks up speed and takes off.

“Over the last few decades, I’m noticing more and more young people appearing on the art scene with amazing skills and hungry for what Alla Prima offers – everything they didn’t learn in art school. Most art schools offer predominately modern art. They discourage anything that might inhibit the spontaneous act, such as prior knowledge of traditional methods.”

As we enter this new Golden Age at the birth of this new century, Schmid’s achievements have continued to grow. In 2000, when he received the John Singer Sargent Medal for Lifetime Achievement, the presentation was made by Richard Ormond, Sargent's grandnephew during a special awards ceremony at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. In 2005, he was presented with an Honorary Doctorate Degree from the Lyme Academy College of Fine Art in Old Lyme, CT. And in 2009, West Wind Fine Art, which has represented Richard Schmid's paintings since 1998, curated an historic exhibition RICHARD SCHMID & HIS INFLUENCE at the Salmagundi Club in New York City with paintings by Schmid and a selection of recognized artists who he has mentored, including his wife, Nancy Guzik. Also featured at the show were Timothy R. Thies, Daniel Gerhartz, Rose Frantzen, Scott Burdick, Susan Lyon, Paul Mullally, Clayton Beck III, Molly Schmid, Gretchen Schmid, Judy Stach, and Casey Baugh.

Then, in 2009, Schmid wrote and published The Landscapes, featuring over 300 of his images spanning 50 years of painting directly from nature. Schmid is also working on a revised and expanded edition of Alla Prima and has several other books in the developmental stages.

At the conclusion of Alla Prima Schmid writes, “Somewhere within all of us there is a wordless center, a part of us that hopes to be immortal in some way, a part that has remained unchanged since we were children, the source of our strength and compassion. “This faint confluence of the tangible and the spiritual is where Art comes from. It has no limits, and once you tap into it you will realize what truly rich choices you have. “May each painting you do from that sacred place include an expression of gratitude for the extraordinary privilege of being an artist.”

As we enter this new Golden Age, it is art lovers worldwide who are expressing gratitude to Richard Schmid – for the generous sharing of his accumulated wisdom and for the extraordinary privilege of witnessing his artistic vision.
- written by Sheryll Reichwein

Richard Schmid's Gallery Representation:

* WEST WIND FINE ART, Falmouth, MA on Cape Cod, www.WestWindFineArt.com
* Contact: Kristen Thies, CEO/Co-Founder: Email: Kristen@WestWindFineArt.com or by calling 508-566-9463

Affiliations:

* President/Founder: Stove Prairie Press, LLC
* Co-Founder: Putney Painters, Putney, Vermont
* Artist Member: The Salmagundi Club, NYC, NY.