Richard Schmid
Richard Schmid was born in Chicago,
Illinois in 1934. His earliest artistic influence came from his
maternal grandfather, Julian Oates, an architectural sculptor.
Richards initial studies in landscape painting, figure
drawing, and anatomy began at the age of twelve and continued
into classical techniques under William H. Mosby at the American
Academy of Art in Chicago.
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.
However, Richards individual style and the content of his
work developed along personal lines.
In 2005, Richard Schmid was presented
with the Gold Medal award from the Portrait Society of America
during their annual portrait conference held in Washington DC.
Richard is also the recipient of an honorary doctorate degree
from the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts in Old Lyme, CT.
At ceremonies hosted by the American
Society of Portrait Artists in the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium
in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2000, Richard Schmid received
the John Singer Sargent Medal for Lifetime Achievement. Richard
Ormond, Sargents grandnephew, presented the award. In May
2005, Schmid received the prestigious gold-medal award from The
Portrait Society of America at their annual conference held in
Washington, DC.
Throughout his career, Richard
Schmid has promoted art education through his books, articles,
workshops, seminars, and television presentations. He travels
widely in the Western Hemisphere for his subjects, and currently
lives in Vermont with his wife, the painter Nancy Guzik.
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