The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-10-12
After 20 Years of Work,
Upp Exhibits Paintings

~. lie EscEElc GL6lE[@H-y g-c- s--l-A-s
finished. And TIE difference n Ina
whz. twenty years has do-e 20 thi1
Ipsfater,s style Tie first picture. =
rather famous one By the way, shows
q nninu.eness 70 detail that Is most
unbelievable, and : really wonderful
effect is produced But IN TIE Later
picture there IS more warmth more
soft shadows and more gs1tleasss- Ths
FIRST Il rather cold. the second =
warmer, for the details are rot So
exact, but broader The first ons can
examine az close as the eye can focus
and Still be astoaishst BY its Truth,
the second Is to be viewed from a dis
stauce
/ All Of the pictures On display we're
Painted In the last three years with
tine exception OF two In all the t~en-
ltT-aine years Mr.. Upp has been paint
ing, this IL the first time that he has
been able to get q collection together.
He considers that the -e-y best WORK
he has eTe< done is In the collection.
1 To be Exhibited Soon.
] Al first he said he had 70 sell his
pictures as he painted them and SO
was unable to hare collection al any
time But noE that he has come to .
/ time that he need not bother on this
score, he has been able 10 crafty his
desire OF seeing his pictures together
and IN three months the collection on
display here viii be exhibited In a
famous Springfield art gallery where
some Of the most famous artists OF the
day. both American and foreign, have
shown their work
| For twenty years he has lived on
the Green homestead q few miles from
Hamilton and here he has built
great studio In which he does his work
George Opp was born IN Indiana in
fIs44 aud Is seyenty-one years OF age
now, and still actively engaged in
painting. Il feel that I would rather
die than lose the power to paint he
said Il paint all OF the time, / paint
everything II is my hfe.'
As boy Upp attended the Cooper
Institute in New York, but when his
fathers health failed he was forced
to come home to Iowa where the fam
lily had just recently moved. Young
Upp worked On farm till the civil
war, painting all the time He joined
the army and serTed till 1865. After
he was mustered out he went direct
to Chicago and became pupil of the
great portrait painter. Heaiy. With
this master ne studied portraiture
only. For ten years he painted por-
traits after he left Healy. and when
he came to Keokuk for the first time
in 1876. his work was in great demand
and IN the four years he was here ne
painted 211 portraits OF Keokrk PEG
pie and the greater part OF them are
still in Keokuk homes.
Goes to Mexico.
| In 1880 Upp returned to Chicago,
where he painted portraits OF the
niece OF Mrs. Potter Palmer and many
noted personages Of the day. 1t was
the painting OF Feokuk picture that
got him commission to go to Mexico
and paint many OF the notables of
that country. This portrait was Of
Judge tombstone, father OF A. E.
tombstone Of this city who was de-
scrihed as the handsomest man in the
country at one time. SO striking was
the face Of this man that the painter
made two portraints and took one to
| Chicago with him.
One day Potter Palmer brought the
commander in chief of the Mexican
army at that time, to Upp's studio AMI
| the visitor was SO struck with John
stones portrait that he asked Upp to
come to Mexico and paint his family.
In Mexico Over a Year.
! This he did and was eighteen
months in the southern republic,
painting famous men Of the republic,
including General Terrasses, governor
of the state of Chihuahua, and his en-
! tire family. The painter returned to
Chicago in 1887 where he lost his
wife.
| A year later John NJ. Huiskamp
started great panorama here and
wrote to Upp to come down and help
paint some OF the figures. The visitor
has temporary studio over Jones
hat store at this time.
There was young man interested
in painting who used to visit him
there, Harry Green, who lived with
his parents a short distance from
Hamilton. Upp used him for model
several times. and one of the pictures
produced was the one Hornaday later
purchased and which is now on did
play in the collection here. One dav
Green invited Upp to 60 home with
him and spend the night on the farm.
This he did and was go attracted By
the place that he remained for some
time, painting farm scenes. He was
without a home and was so struck
with the surroundings that he decided
to make the place his homo. He built
a great studio there and has lived
there until the present time.
Big Market IN Buffalo.
! As he finished his paintings he sent
them east. His greatest market is in
Buffalo, and his work is In the private
collections OF such men as W. F.
Ague, the great oil man, q. H. Hers
berger and others. Upp received his
introduction in the east through the
naturalist. Hornaday. The latter, 1t
this time had been collecting an
finals for the Smithsonian inst.-
tute and he presented Upp with
IA mounted TIGERS head linn