John Paul Strain

Historical Artist

American artist John Paul Strain captures the color, drama, and history of the Civil War with a vivid realism that is unique among the nation’s top-ranking historical artists. His book, “A Witness to the Civil War” released in November 2002 is a best seller for his publisher and is currently on its second printing. The book is unusual among art books in that it is written by the artist. Scholastic Resources purchased over 3 thousand copies of the edition for school libraries across the country.

Recently John Paul Strain was invited to make a one hour appearance on the national television program “Washington Journal” on C-Span, where he fielded questions about his art and history. Strain’s paintings have helped to raise funds for many historical restoration projects and battlefield preservation organizations. The National Park Service have used his images in their publications and at battlefield sites. A number of historical private institutions have also featured his work such as JEB Stuart’s home and estate.

Mr. Strain’s limited edition prints are highly acclaimed and sought after by collectors who prize his studies of Lee, Jackson, Forrest and other Civil War Leaders, as well as scenes of conflict and pageantry. He is the first historical artist to offer his works using the Giclée process on canvas, which have become an immediate success. The reproductions of his work have won numerous 1^st place awards and “Best of Show” honors, such as the PICA Awards, The Printing Industry of the Carolinas Inc.

His distinctive artistic style, which combines bright colors and contrasting shadows, and his devotion to historic authenticity, and conservative edition sizes have made his work well known and avidly collected throughout the world of historical art.

P. Buckley Moss

Patricia Buckley was born on May 20th, 1933, in the Richmond Borough of New York City. She was the second of three children of an Irish/AmericanSicilian Marriage. In grade school, young Patricia was perceived as a poor student, a circumstance probably attributable to dyslexia which is a generally misunderstood reading and perceptional "disorder". Nonetheless, one of her teachers determined that this little girl who was "Not Proficient In Anything" was artistically gifted. This outside opinion helped to convince Pat's mother to enroll her daughter in an extraordinary public school for girls in downtown Manhattan: the Washington Irving High School for the Fine Arts. It was there, in what obviously was a friendly learning environment, that Pat's artistic abilities were finally encouraged and seriously nourished.

In 1951 Pat received a scholarship to New York's Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. She studied at this prestigious art school for four years and specialized in fine arts and graphic design. Soon after leaving school she married Jack Moss, a chemical engineer.

In 1964, Pat's husband's work took his family by then five children with a sixth child ontheway to Waynesboro in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. It was here that she came to appreciate the quiet beauty of rural scenery and to know the picturesque and deeply religious Amish and Mennonite "plain" people. Soon she was incorporating these new elements into her art creating an impetus that revitalized her artistic career and reignited her ambitions.

In 1967 she won her first major art show prize, a oneperson museum exhibition. This exhibition was a "sellout" and the success encouraged her to start seriously marketing her work. The uniqueness of her style and the warmth generated by her subject matter quickly won her wide spread recognition.

Today, thousands of collectors in the United States, Europe, and Japan have come to recognize, appreciate, and treasure Pat Moss' art with its distinctive look and its great popular appeal. Although she now enjoys tremendous artistic success, Pat Moss has become almost equally wellknown for her dedicated work with special education groups and her generous donations to children-related charities.

Pat Moss has become a role model for the learning impaired and frequently is asked to speak to special education classes. Donations of Moss' original works and prints to related children's charities have raised millions of dollars for their causes. In 1986, the P. Buckley Moss Society was established by a few zealous collectors to assist the artist and her husband in all of their charitable endeavors. This Society now has some 38 active chapters and a membership of approximately 15,000 members. P. Buckley Moss is both the Society's inspiration and its "battle cry" as it spreads the artist's messages of concern and optimism for what might otherwise be forgotten and misunderstood children and adults.

In 1989, the P. Buckley Moss Museum opened in Waynesboro, Virginia. Its stated purpose is to permanently record and illuminate the Moss phenomenon through educational exhibitions, lectures, permanent collections and archival files. Today the Museum attracts approximately 45,000 visitors per year. It has become a place for people to "rediscover" some of the traditional meanings and potential consequences of art. Pat Moss' story is told and illustrated over and over in the Museum's main gallery, as visitors are exposed to some of the best examples of her artistic creativity.

In 1995, the P. Buckley Moss Foundation for Children's Education was formed to help children with learning disabilities to succeed in school and in life. The Foundation encourages the use of the visual and performing arts in all educational programs, but especially those involving children who learn differently.

Pat Moss in her art and in her life seems to "speak" a language that ordinary folks are able to understand. Talent, determination, intelligibility, a little luck, and lots of caring are all parts of the Moss phenomenon. These are the attributes that constitute Moss' life and fill her art. For many who know her work and are familiar with her life and her upbeat philosophy, she truly is "THE PEOPLE'S ARTIST".

Mort Künstler

Historical Artist

He's the premier historical artist in America - and now he focuses mainly on the American Civil War. When Mort Künstler began his current emphasis on Civil War art in the early 1980s, he had already accomplished more than a half-dozen artists could hope to accomplish in a collective lifetime. From portraits of prehistoric American life to the odyssey of the space shuttle, Mort Künstler had painted America's story - and was already renowned as "the premier historical artist in America." When he placed his focus on Civil War art, Mr. Künstler quickly established himself as the country's most-collected Civil War artist, and earned unprecedented acclaim within the genre of Civil War art.

"Mort Künstler is the foremost Civil War artist of our time -- if not of all time," says Dr. James I. Robertson Jr., the dean of Civil War historians and the author of the celebrated biography, Stonewall Jackson. "To study his paintings," says Robertson, "is to simply see history alive." Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James McPherson concurs. "Of all the artists working in the Civil War field," he observes, "none captures the human element, the aura of leadership, the sense of being there and sharing in the drama, quite like Mort Künstler. He has that enviable talent of being able to re-create history on canvas and to translate events into art."

Harold Holzer, Vice-President of Communications and leading authority on Civil War art with New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art, believes the popular enthusiasm for Mr. Künstler's work is due to his artistic talent as much as to the authenticity of his art. "He deserves double credit" says Holzer, "His art is terrific and he's attracted thousands of people to Civil War art."

Mr. Künstler's talent and training were nurtured from an early age. After studying art at Brooklyn College, U.C.L.A. and Pratt Institute, he became a successful illustrator in New York where he received assignments from book and magazine publishers. An important part of his training resulted from his affiliation with National Geographic Magazine. It was through their assignments of historical subject matter that he learned the value of working with historians so that accuracy was firmly imbued into his concept.

In the early 1970s, Mr. Künstler's paintings began attracting the attention of serious art collectors. At first the interest was mainly in his Western subject matter, but after a major museum retrospective exhibition and a one-man show at the prestigious Hammer Galleries in New York City, he became known as an important painter of historic subjects. Since his first show in 1977, Mr. Künstler has had thirteen more highly successful one-man shows at Hammer Galleries, his most recent in October 2004.

In 1982, a commission from CBS-TV to do a painting for the mini-series, The Blue and the Gray directed Mr. Künstler's interest towards the Civil War. Although the research was painstaking, he devoted much time to making sure that his painting The High Water Mark was meticulously correct. The painting was unveiled at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum on July 2, 1988 in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the battle. Since then, Mr. Künstler has been concentrating on Civil War subject matter.

In 1986, more than two hundred Künstler artworks were published in the book, The American Spirit - The Paintings of Mort Künstler, with text by famed historian Henry Steele Commager. An updated edition of The American Spirit was published in 1994 by Rutledge Hill Press. Images of the Civil War - The Paintings of Mort Künstler, with text by Pulitzer Prize winning author James McPherson, was published in 1992. Gettysburg - The Paintings of Mort Künstler, also with text by James McPherson was published by Turner Publishing as a companion piece to the epic feature film and mini-series Gettysburg. In 1993, a one-hour television special, entitled Images of the Civil War - The Paintings of Mort Künstler, was shown on the A&E network.

His reputation for both accuracy and artistic mastery earned Mr. Künstler a commission from the U.S. Postal Service in 1992 to do a painting of the Buffalo Soldiers. The stamp was issued in April of 1994. Other books featuring his art include Jackson and Lee: Legends in Gray, with text by James I. Robertson, Jr., Images of the Old West: The Paintings of Mort Künstler with text by Dee Brown, Mort Künstler's Civil War: The North and Mort Künstler's Civil War: The South, Mort Künstler's Old West: Cowboys, and Mort Künstler's Old West: Indians - which were all published by Rutledge Hill Press.

In 1998, the Nassau County Museum of Art in New York sponsored a one-man exhibition entitled The Civil War - The Paintings of Mort Künstler. More than 130 paintings, drawings, and sculptures were gathered together from around the nation. The seven-week exhibition attracted more than 30,000 visitors, surpassing the previous attendance record set by a Picasso exhibit.

In Virginia, Governor James Gilmore officially declared a "Mort Künstler Day" in 1999, and in 2000, Governor Gilmore officially opened an exhibition at the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond called The Confederate Spirit: The Paintings of Mort Künstler, which was the first one-man exhibition of a contemporary artist ever held at the museum. Later that year, a book by the same name was published by Rutledge Hill Press with a narrative by James I. Robertson, Jr. In a similar ceremony north of the Mason-Dixon line in Ohio, Mr. Künstler was selected as the Official Artist of the Ohio State Bicentennial, and his painting of General John Hunt Morgan's raid through Ohio was featured in a long-term exhibit at the Cincinnati Museum Center.

Mr. Künstler continues to participate in a variety of charitable causes that are close to his heart. In 2001, following America's 9-11 tragedy, he contributed one of his most popular limited edition prints - "Old Glory" - for a fund-raiser by the American Red Cross. The non-profit program raised more than $150,000 for the Red Cross to use on behalf of the victims of the 9-11 attack. He continues to provide art and assistance to Timber Ridge School - a residency academy for special students in Winchester, Virginia. In 2003, a residence hall at the school was named Mort Künstler Hall in his honor.

In 2001, Mr. Künstler was named the official artist for the motion picture Gods and Generals, and in 2002 Greenwich Workshop Press published his newest book: Gods and Generals: The Paintings of Mort Künstler. He also served as a consultant for the heralded Ron Maxwell motion picture, Gods and Generals, and his art publisher, American Spirit Publishing, released a series of historical Civil War limited edition prints of key historical events on which the motion picture was based. In 2002, Mr. Künstler became the first artist to be honored by a 6- month one-man exhibition at the new National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 2003, he received the Jefferson Davis Southern Heritage Award from the Military Order of the Stars and Bars - composed of descendants of the Southern officer corps - which followed his 2001 receipt of the Henry Timrod Southern Culture Award by the M.O.S.B.

Mr. Künstler has also been named as an Official Artist for the H.L. Hunley, and unveiled a new painting of the H.L. Hunley during ceremonies in Charleston, South Carolina on April 17-18, 2004. He has also been commissioned to design and furnish all the artwork for the Middletown, Ohio Veterans Memorial, which was unveiled on July 4, 2004.

Probably no other artist in our nation's history has recorded so many events in American history and certainly no one has painted them with the extraordinary authenticity and drama as Mort Künstler. Mort Künstler is America's artist.

Kathy Chumley

Kathy Chumley Noffke was born April 16, 1956, in Haddonfield, NJ.  She grew up in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia in a family of artists where color-mixing went on at the kitchen table and viewings were held in the living room.  While posing for many figure paintings (from age 5 up), she was allowed to peek over her father's shoulder at works in progress.  Learning much from this exposure, it seemed natural to join the "family business" and became an artist herself.

Lessons at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, Virginia, and instruction from sister Bonnie Chumley helped Kathy develop her talents, while inspiration and encouragement from the rest of the family helped keep her on track.

Perhaps father John Chumley didn't realize he was breaking ground for his children while forging his own career; but would have been pleased to know that he did.  His passing in 1984 is still felt deeply by family and friends, but the beauty of his work lives on.

Jeff Chumley

Jeff was born December 11, 1957, in Haddonfield, NJ, but grew up in the northern tip of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.  He is the fourth member of the Chumley family to channel his talent towards a career in fine art.  His father, John Chumley, was a nationally recognized American realist.  His sisters, Bonnie and Kathy, are well established as fine artists and Jeff is an outstanding artist in his own right.  He has painted with oils but prefers the spontaneous versatility of watercolors.

Jeff worked with his father, John, until his death in 1984.  Since then he has studied in the Hilton Leech Studio in Sarasota, FL and the Torpedo Factory School in Alexandria, VA.  Jeff, Bonnie and Kathy continue to bring their work into the family circle for constructive criticism.

Jeff paints an occasional still-life but prefers to work on outdoor landscapes in rural areas.  Frederick County and Clarke County provide endless subject matter and weather permitting Jeff can be seen sitting in a field or beside a stream following the Chumley tradition of capturing on canvas the beauty that Mother Nature has so generously bestowed upon the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

Bonnie Marie Chumley

Bonnie was Born January 19, 1961, in Fort Worth, Texas, where her father, John Chumley, was Artist-in-Residence at the Fort Worth Art Center.  One year later they moved to Frederick County, Virginia where Bonnie grew up in a very family-oriented atmosphere.  Her artistic abilities were evident from a very early age and living in a home where daily life revolved around painting gave her an insight into the world of painting that few young people have.  She says that she was never faced with what to do with her life.  She always knew that when she grew up she was going to be an artist.

After graduating from high school she attended Art School for one year then chose to study under the watchful eye of her father.  From him she learned so much more than the technicalities of painting.  He instilled in her the deep love for the simple things in life.  Walking the fields and woodlands near their home he taught her to see the beauty that Mother Nature provided.  And during their many trips to the Art Museums they would spend hours studying the Old Masters.  Her father always said, "You must learn the scales before playing the piano and you must learn to draw before you paint."  And draw she does.  Her pencil drawings reflect her love for pencil as a medium within itself.  When working on location she uses watercolors but for studio work she prefers painting in oils. 

Her father passed away in 1984 but Bonnie still finds her inspiration while tramping through the fields or visiting Art Museums.

John Chumley

John Chumley lived in the Northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia where he painted the farms, rolling hills and people near his home.  He painted with watercolor, oils and egg tempera - the latter being the major medium used for painting by artists prior to the 14th century.  He was a master of it, creating his own world with the sure hand of a skilled, sensitive artist.

John was born in Minnesota in 1928, but grew up from the age of one in Knoxville, Tenn.  Early in life he discovered a love of art, but had no chance to study until he was 20.  At that time, he enrolled in the Ringling School of Art in Sarasota, Florida.  However, his studies were interrupted by a three-year tour of duty in the Air Force.  Upon his discharge from the service, he enrolled in the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art in Philadelhia, Pa.  During this time he began showing his work at the Maynard Walker Gallery in New York City.

After graduating from the Academy his career began with the acceptance of a teaching position as Artist-in Residence at the Fort Worth Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas.  Three years later John had his first one-man show in New York and that was the turning point in his career.  It was a sell-out, but even more important, it received critical acclaim from the New York Times and Time Magazine.  That thrust John onto the national scene in the way all young artists dream of.

With the successful show behind them, John and his wife, Bettye, were able to fulfill another dream.  The purchase of their very own land-200 acres of it-in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, a place to raise their four young children and to live the good life.  This they did for the next 20 years, with John continuing to paint and Bettye keeping things running smoothly and attending to business with her warm, friendly manner.  Under these conditions he was able to approach his art in an ideal way.

John was an "outdoors" person.  That helps explain his commitment to working on location rather than using photographs.  By going back to the same spot day after day and seeing it under different light and weather conditions, he felt he was able to capture a much deeper feeling in the finished painting.  That method of working was as much a necessity as a luxury for him.  If he felt the subject warranted carrying on to oil or tempera he then took the sketches and watercolor studies back to the studio where he did the final work.

The New York Times said the Chumley paintings "seem to capture a moment in time and catch his subjects unaware, as it were, so that he arrives on the scene at moments of insight and recollection."  Unknown to most, however, these fleeting moments have sometimes taken him weeks or months of hard work.  Whatever the time element may be, Chumley had the remarkable ability to impart magic to the commonplace - a hill, a farmhouse, a flower.  And in painting after painting there are those incredible shafts of pure sunlight.

In whatever medium, the completed paintings were received enthusiastically by a wide audience.  John's national renown did not change the basic man.  He retained the soft spoken humility that endeared him personally to those who lived near him.  A close friend says of him, "John was a unique type person: one of the greatest individuals I've ever run into.  He had absolute feeling about the manner of life he would lead; that he felt was essential to him as an artist and as a man.  And you can call him fortunate enough or determined enough, so that he lived it."

As one museum director wrote, "John Chumley's painting has not changed over the years-it has merely continued on.  What he said ten or twenty years ago is as valid today as it was then, and what he painted then will still be as valid a hundred year hence. In this age of doubt and despair, it is wonderful to find a happy painter without doubts and with strong convictions.  Each Chumley painting is filled with nature.  Surely one of the greatest privileges and pleasures must be to have a Chumley painting hanging on one's wall, that one may refer to again and again, and with each look come away with the feeling that this is the real thing, that this is the good earth as it was meant to be, and that life is so worth living."