The Art of Don Stivers June 11, 2008

Don Stivers is one of the American military’s favorite artists. The Stars and Stripes newspaper called his prints “as much a mainstay in Army headquarters buildings as the smell of wax coming off their highly shined floors.” This summer, however, art enthusiasts won’t need a security clearance to see his work in Chicago.

Ten original oil paintings will be on display along with a selection of prints in The Art of Don Stivers, a new exhibition at the Pritzker Military Library from June 12th to August 27th, 2008. Admission is free during normal Library hours (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), and also for Library members during scheduled evening events.

The Art of Don Stivers includes a wide range of Stivers’ work, from his famed cavalry scenes (The Chase at Rattlesnake Springs) and legendary generals (To Make Hell Tremble) to intimate moments of hope (Plans for the Future) and resolve (The Farewell) among soldiers and their loved ones. Stivers is best known for his Civil War subjects, but he has also been called one of the most prolific painters of the Buffalo Soldiers, and this exhibition includes a rare look at World War II (To Relieve Bastogne) by the artist.

Stivers, a native of Superior, Wisconsin, served for two years as a Navy corpsman in World War II. After a career illustrating the covers of magazines such as Time and Field & Stream and the All Creatures Great and Small book series, he turned to military and historical subjects. His paintings have been commissioned by the U.S. Command & General Staff College, the Army War College, and a long list of cavalry, infantry, and artillery units. His work has long been a centerpiece of the Pritzker Military Library’s art collection, which includes 22 of his prints, but this is the first time his original oil paintings have been on display at the Library.

“Don Stivers eloquently captures the realism of battle, the je ne sais quoi of the cavalry experience, and the honor of the nation’s military,” said Teri Embrey, Senior Librarian at the Pritzker Military Library. “It’s an honor to host this exhibition of his original oils.”

The Pritzker Military Library hosts regular exhibitions of military art and photography in its gallery, drawing from the work of visiting artists as well as a collection of more than 900 posters and prints, and over 6,000 photographs and glass plate negatives. Past exhibitions have included artists such as James Dietz, Steve Mumford, Howard Chandler Christy, and James Montgomery Flagg.

Official Website: http://www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org/collection/galleryExhibitions.jsp