Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1920-01-08
INDIANA ARTISTS
WIN HIGH FAME
Honors Heaped on HOOsier
Painters at Exhibitions
in All Parts of World.

One OF our earliest painters was Cox,
and in the collection of the paintings of
our early governors that adorn the walls
of the library in tine statehouse you will
find several of them painted by him.
Gen. Lew Wallace was one Of his pupils
and it was only by the merest accident
that the author Of "Ben Hur" did not
become a portrait painter. If he had
never written his early nveol of the
crusades, which was never published, he
would probably never have ventured on
his famous novel.
competition was held for a portrait
of Gov wallace and among the paintings
submitted was an unsigned portrait and
the painter OF which was unknown to
any member Of the committee. This
portrait was accepted by the committee
and it was afterwards discovered that
Lew Wallace had painted the portrait
of his father. That portrait is in the
library of the statehouse today. Lew
Wallace was a pupil of Cox and years
afterwards when he was ambassador to
Turkey, the general painted a portrait
of the sultan.
Another of our early painters whose
memory has lived through famous pupil
was B. r. Hayes. His pupil was William
Merritt Chase-one Of the greatest Amer
lean portrait painters Chase was born
at Franklin, Ind, in 1S49. After leaving
Indianapolis he studied under J. o.
Eaton on New York He then went
abroad studying under A. Wagner and
Piloty of Munich. Returning to the
United States he established a studio
In New York City. He received medal
at the Philadelphia exhibition in 1875;
honorable mention In Paris in 1881 hon
ors at Munich in 1888; the silver medal
in the Paris salon, 1889; first prize of
the Cleveland Art association In 1894:
the Shaw prize Of the Society of Ameri-
can Artists in 1895 the gold medal at
the Paris exposition in 1900. A few
years ago Mr.. Chase died and ranked as
one OF the greatest portrait painters.
We now come to our artists, who.
after finishing their apprenticeship days,
came back to their own state and set
tied down. T. C. Steele, whose paintings
are 80 we'll known, was born in Owen.
county. He lived in Munich for Ave
years and studied under Bentzur ane
Loefrts. He exhibited in the Paris solon
In 1900 and his paintings are in the nrt
museums OF St. Louie, Cincinnati, the
Boston Arts club and our own Heron
Art institute, on the site OF which there
was a house in which he lived long be-
fore the Art institute was thought Of.
Mr. Steele won the $500 prize In Chicago
in 1900; he was president of the Society
OF Western Artists, and was appointed
a member to select the paintings for the
st. Louis exposition in 1904. The stn
do of Mr.. Steele Is on a high hill at
Belmont, in Brown county, which he
loves so dearly and where be has painted
so many of his finest landscapes. In
1913 be was elected au associate national
academician-one of the highest honors
paid to an artist In America. and In 1915
he was given the honorary degree of
doctor OF laws at the University Of In
diana. Mr. Steele has taken n studio
for the winter at the Circle building,
where an admirable. collection OF hi6
latest paintings are on view.
William Forsyth is another of our
painters OF the Munich school who has
returned to give American artists the
benefit OF his knowledge, as he Is an
instructor at the John Heron Art in
stitute. He was awarded the medal at
the Royal academy in Munich In 1885,,
and in 1904 took both the bronze and
the silver medals at the St. Louis ex
position. The $500 Fine Arts prize OF
the Society of Western Artists was given
to him in 1910, the bronze medal was
awarded his painting at the Universal
exposition in Buenos Ayres, Argentina,