History

OLAF WIEGHORST

The talented painter known today as "The Dean of Western Art" had a lifelong love of horses and of the rugged individuals who helped shape the American West. Olaf's life and careers were intimately linked to horses. Born in Viborg, Denmark, on April 30, 1899, he was a stunt rider for a Danish circus before migrating to the United States at the age of 19. Arriving penniless from Denmark in 1918, he spent his working career on mounted patrol with the U.S. Cavalry and the New York City Police Department Mounted Division, with occasional interludes as a wrangler on ranches in the West. Wherever he went, he sketched and painted the Western culture he loved, often selling his work as calendar and magazine illustrations.

Wieghorst traveled the West extensively, gathering material for his paintings. On frequent visits to Indian reservations, he became familiar with the most prominent Western tribes. He insisted on authenticity in every detail of his work. While adhering to the Remington/Russell tradition, Olaf's work was based on his own experiences and reflected his emotional ties with the great Western landscapes. The Quarter Circle 2C brand which became his signature logo honored the Cunningham ranch near Alma, New Mexico, where Wieghorst worked as a cowboy in the early 1920s.

Retiring from the New York City Police Department in 1944, Wieghorst moved west with his wife, Mae, and their son, Roy, eventually settling in El Cajon in 1945. He bought a small house on open land south of the center of town and, with the help of friends, built a studio for himself, a stable and corral for his beloved horses. In 1951, he hung his first "Adobe Wall Art Exhibit" on the patio in front of his home.

Artistic Accomplishments

In his work, the artist recreated his memories of the country's vast and majestic landscapes, and of the multicultural people who lived and worked on the land. His focus was often the horse and he had the ability, as both artist and friend, to depict the powerful strength and character of the magnificent animals he portrayed. Skilled in a number of artistic techniques, Wieghorst painted in oil and watercolor, sculpted in bronze, etched in copper, and sketched in pen and ink. As his reputation grew, he was honored with a number of memorable exhibitions including the following:

1954 - "The Great American West", 28 paintings at the Grand Central Art gallery in New York City

1962 - "The West of Olaf Wieghorst" at the San Diego Museum of Art

1974 - Retrospective Exhibit at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center in Oklahoma City.

2002 - San Diego Historical Society in Balboa Park

Additionally, the artist's work has been shown at major galleries and museums nationwide including the Maxwell Gallery, San Francisco; Camelback Gallery, Scottsdale, Arizona; Phoenix Museum of Fine Art; and Whitney Gallery of Western Art, Cody, Wyoming. Retrospective exhibits have been held at the Tucson Museum of Art and the Gilcrease Musuem in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

In 1982, the National Wildlife and Western Art Collectors Society honored Wieghorst as the Western Artist of the Year. That same year, Navajo Madonna, painted in 1962 and given to Mae, sold for a reported $450,000. Three years later, the painting and its mate, Navajo Man, were purchased for a reported $1,000,000 in a private sale. Famous private collectors of Wieghorst's art include U.S. Presidents Reagan, Ford, Nixon and Eisenhower; Senator Barry Goldwater, J. P. Morgan, Leonard Firestone, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Bing Crosby, John Wayne, Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood.

"When the time comes for me to put away my palette and unsaddle my pony for the last time," he said, "I hope that my canvases will in some small measure add to the historical recording of an era: the cowpony, the cowboy, and the Great American West."

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