Summary
"I am an Artist, Mural Painter, Engraver, Photographer, Author, Educator, Lecturer and Philosopher."
Leo Katz (1887-1982)
Leo was born in the Carpathian Mountains of Czechoslovakia on December 30 1887. Almost immediately he began drawing people and horses on scraps of paper with charcoal from the fireplace in his rural home. He won a spot for formal art training at the prestigious Fine Arts Academy in Vienna and later went on to study at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts. After serving as a lieutenant in the Austrian Army in World War I, Leo traveled extensively throughout Europe painting portraits for commissions.
He was sponsored by Frank Vanderlip to come to America in 1921. New York was his primary home where he painted portraits and taught classes. In the early thirties, he traveled to the west and painted Glacier Park and Mexican landscapes. He moved to Los Angeles in 1934 to pursue mural painting, as well as a teaching position at the Chouinard Art Institute. He painted many murals during his career such as assisting Jose Clemente Orozco with his frescos at Dartmouth College, the 1934 Chicago Worlds Fair, and the Frank Wiggins Trade School in Los Angeles.
Leo relocated back to New York in the 1940s and resumed his teaching at the New School for Social Research where a fledgling print shop by Stanley William Hayter was started. Leo participated with Atelier 17 from its inception to its ending and was Co-Director on and off during the late 1940s, when he was also a resident artist and created 26 important prints. Meanwhile, he was very involved in the early stages of photography. He became a photographer, taught photography, and wrote extensively on photography as an art form.
The Leo Katz Foundation has documented over 170 portraits, 7 murals, 28 prints, 200 paintings, 5 books, hundreds of photographs and numerous sculptures that Leo created during his career. Awards include the American Purchase Prize from the Library of Congress, and American Prized Prints of the 20th Century by the American Artists Group. His artwork is represented in many prestigious museums throughout the United States and the world.
He taught modern art, printmaking, photography, art history and philosophy, influencing the next generation of artists. He was a teacher and guest lecturer at over 30 colleges, universities, and museums. He reached over 10,000 students by his estimation. Leo was in the pursuit of the meaning of life in his artwork, teaching and writing. He was passionate about the craft of art, sharing his enthusiasm for art, and developing the artist within others.
Childhood Years
1887-1904; 0-17 Years Old- 12/30/1887 Born in Mountain Village of Rosnau, Austria-Hungary
- 1887-1892 Lived in Rosnau, Austria-Hungary
- 1892-1904 Lived in Prossnitz, Austria-Hungary
College Years
1905-1915; 18-28 Years Old- 1905-1908 Studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, Austria
- 1908-1909 Attended Fine Arts Academy and Veterinary Institute in Munich, Germany
- 1912 Married Hedi Korngold, a professional violinist
- 1912-1915 Lived and painted tempura mural at Tobitshau Castle in Moravia, Czechoslovakia
- 1913 One man exhibit in Pisco, Vienna
War and Coming to America
1916-1924; 29-37 Years Old- 1913-1922 Produced over 50 portraits
- 1916-1918 WWII Lieutenant in Austrian Mounted Army on the Romanian Front
- 1917 Permission to paint Lipizzaner horses at the Emperor's stables
- 1918 One man portrait show in Musikverein in Vienna, Austria
- 1919-1921 Lived in Holland
- 1919 Article featuring portraits by Leo in Modern Welt, Austria
- 1920 Met Frank Vanderlip, who sponsored Leo to come to America
- 1921 Arrived in New York, lived with the Vanderlips in Scarborough, New York
- 1921 Moses, a pencil drawing, is accepted into the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
- 1923 Article Leo Katz Freud of the Easel is published by International Studio
- 1923 One man portrait show at Ehrlich Galleries in New York
New York Years, Portraits and Teaching
1924-1932; 37-45 Years Old- 1922-1932 Lived in New York and completed over 50 portraits
- 1923 One man show at Ehrlich Gallery, New York
- 1925 One man portrait show at National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
- 1927-1934 Taught Modern Art Classes at Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
- 1923-1933 Taught Modern Art classes at UCLA in Los Angeles, California
- 1927 One man show at Fine Arts Gallery, San Diego, California
- 1927 Taught classes at San Diego University and Chouinard Art Institute, California
- 1928-1930 Leo’s travel is sponsored by the Great Northern Railroad to go to Glacier National Park to paint landscapes and portraits
- 1929-1930 Traveled to Alberta, Canada and paints the Blood Tribe Indian
- 1929-1933 Taught Modern Art at Museum of Modern Art and New York University
- 1930 Became a US Citizen
- 1931 One man show of Glacier National Park paintings at Montross Galleries in New York
- 1932 Traveled and sketched in Mexico and New Mexico
- 1936-1940 Taught art classes at Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Mural Years
1932-1938; 41-51 Years Old- 1932 Assisted Jose Clemente Orozco with mural at Dartmouth College Library in Dartmouth, New Hampshire
- 1932-1938 Completed 5 Lithograph
- 1932-1933 Taught Modern Art at UCLA, Los Angeles, California
- 1933-1934 Painted Give us This Day a 1700sf Mural exhibited at the Chicago World's Fair, Illinois
- 1934 Taught Fine Arts and Print Making at New York University, New York
- 1934-35/1943 Taught Art and Print Making at the Chouinard Institute in Los Angeles, California
- 1935 Published Teaching the Fine Arts at the University of North Carolina, North Carolina
- 1935-1936 Painted a mural depicting American Culture at Frank Wiggins Trade School, Los Angeles, California
- 1935-1942 Published four important photography article
- 1936 Published a three volume book called Modern Art for Delphinian Society
- 1936 Lived at Hotel Leighton in Los Angeles, California
- 1936-1940 Taught Art at Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- 1936-1946 Taught Art and Photography at the Cooper Union School of Art, New York
- 1937 Commissioned to do Prints for the 100th Anniversary of the Stradivarius Violin
- 1938 Painted a Mural and lived at the Hotel Breyort, New York
- 1938 Print Is this the Meaning of Life wins LA Print Society First Prize
Teaching and Printmaking
1938-1946; 51-59 Years Old- 1934 Taught at New York University, New York
- 1936-1946 Lived in New York
- 1939-1942 Taught Philosophy of Art and Photography at the Cooper Union School of Art, New York
- 1940-1946 Produced 10 Print
- 1942 Contributed to the Encyclopedia of Photography
- 1942 One man show at Puma Gallery in New York
- 1942 Painted Metamorphosis Mural
- 1942-1943 Exhibited at "Artists for Victory" show at Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
- 1942-1946 Taught Print Making at The New School of Social Research, New York
- 1942-1946 Taught Design and Art Photography at Brooklyn College, New York
- 1942-1958 Taught Creative Photography at Spelman College in Georgia
- 1943 Taught a class on Modern Man and Modern Art at a contemporary art gallery in New York
- 1945 Exhibited at Atelier 17 Show at the Willard Gallery in New York
- 1946-1953 Chairman of the Hampton Institute Art Department, Virginia
- 1946-1956 President and Member of the Virginia Art Alliance
- 1947 Society of American Print makers Member and Publisher
Prints and The West
1946-1954; 59-67 Years Old- 1940-1950 Painted dozens of portraits
- 1946 Pegasus Print wins the Pennell Prize from the Library of Congress, Washington DC
- 1946-1953 Lived in Virginia
- 1946-1953 Taught Basic Design and Print Making at Brooklyn College, New York
- 1946-1954 Made 8 prints
- 1949 Taught at North Carolina State College School of Design
- 1950-1960 Produced 10 portraits
- 1952-1953 One man show at Jacobi Gallery in New York
- 1956 One man show at Atlanta Art Association, Georgia
Atlanta Years
1954-1958; 67-71 Years Old- 1955-1957 Director and Artist in Residence at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia
- 1955-1957 Made 2 prints
- 1955-1958 Starts on new series of paintings and portraits
Energy and Writing
1958-1964; 71-78 Years Old- 1956-1960 Painted Spiral Galaxy and other Energy Paintings
- 1957-1960 Lived in New York
- 1957-1961 Lived and Worked at McDowell Colony in New Hampshire
- 1957-1965 Made 10 oil paintings related to power and energy
- 1962 Produced 1 print
- 1963 Painted Cumulous Nimbus, a 3 panel oil painting
- 1964-1968 Lived at Hotel Chelsea in New York
Later Work
1964-1970; 78-84 Years Old- 1964 Taught Art at Georgia Tech, Georgia
- 1967 Conducted Photography workshops at Eastman Kodak Institute, Rochester, New York
- 1968 Book Quest for Life... Coincidences is Finished
- 1968 Won lawsuit and recovered paintings, Atlanta, Georgia
- 1968 Published Basic Principles and New Approaches with N. Lyons/Eastman Kodak
- 1968-1982 Lived at the Andrew Freeman Home, New York
- 1973 Entered into Who's Who of American Art
- 1974 Bronx Council of Arts Exhibition Award of 1st Prize in Photography
Retirement
1970-1982; 84-96 Years Old- 1970-1982 Continued to paint and be a Guest Lecturer
Brooklyn College
New York, New York
Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art
Pittsburg, Philadelphia
College of the City of New York
New York, New York
Columbia University
New York, New York
Cooper Union
New York, New York
Curtis Institute
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Eastman Kodak Institute
Rochester, New York
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia
Hampton Institute
Hampton, Virginia
Institute of Contemporary Art
Los Angeles, California
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York, New York
New York, New York
Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art
Pittsburg, Philadelphia
College of the City of New York
New York, New York
Columbia University
New York, New York
Cooper Union
New York, New York
Curtis Institute
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Eastman Kodak Institute
Rochester, New York
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia
Hampton Institute
Hampton, Virginia
Institute of Contemporary Art
Los Angeles, California
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York, New York
New School of Social Research
New York, New York
Newark Museum
Newark, New Jersey
Norfolk Museum
Norfolk, Virginia
Spelman College
Atlanta, Georgia
University of California
Los Angeles, California
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California
Wesleyan University
Middletown, Connecticut
Virginia Arts Alliance
Virginia
Yale University
New Haven, Connecticut
New York, New York
Newark Museum
Newark, New Jersey
Norfolk Museum
Norfolk, Virginia
Spelman College
Atlanta, Georgia
University of California
Los Angeles, California
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California
Wesleyan University
Middletown, Connecticut
Virginia Arts Alliance
Virginia
Yale University
New Haven, Connecticut
© 2023 Leo Katz Foundation
lwadge@att.net | P.O. Box 292, Old Lyme, CT 06371
© 2023 LKF