'Cowboy, El Cajon, California' by Olaf Carl Wieghorst, 1959, Horse, Equestrian, American West, Cattle

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Signed lower center, 'Olaf Wieghorst' (American, 1899-1988) with dedication, 'To Herb with best wishes. El Cajon, 1959'

Born in Denmark, … Read more Signed lower center, 'Olaf Wieghorst' (American, 1899-1988) with dedication, 'To Herb with best wishes. El Cajon, 1959'

Born in Denmark, Olaf Wieghorst was the son of a photographer, illustrator and engraver. An energetic boy, by age 9, he was an acrobatic performer for the Danish Circus at the Tivoli Theater. At 12, he was introduced to horses and would go on to travel with the Schumann Circus as a bare-back rider. In 1916, enchanted by the American West which had been personified by Remington magazine articles and traveling 'Wild West' shows, Wieghorst took up painting with that as his inspiration.

In 1918, Wieghorst joined the crew of a steamer ship to New York and jumped ship. He joined the 5th Cavalry Regiment where he patrolled the U.S.–Mexico border and helped chase Pancho Villa. Granted citizenship after service, Wieghorst subsequently worked as a ranch hand in Arizona at the Quarter 2C Ranch, whose brand he adopted as his insignia. Wherever he went, he sketched and painted the Western culture he loved, often selling his work as calendar and magazine illustrations. His work appeared in Zane Grey's Western Magazine and Hoofs and Horns.

Returning to the East Coast, Wieghorst married Mabel Walters in 1924 and joined the New York City Police Department's Mounted Unit, where he was assigned to the Show Team and trained horses at the Remount School of Horsemanship. In his spare time, Wieghorst continued to create and sell his art.

In 1944, Wieghorst retired and moved his family to El Cajon, San Diego County, California. There, he fully dedicated himself to art, maintaining two horses that he kept for use as models and for riding. Wieghorst became a celebrated horse portraitist, with his most famous models being Gene Autry's Champion and Roy Rogers' Trigger. Wieghorst’s artwork has been in the collection of three U.S. Presidents--Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald R. Ford and Ronald Reagan--and a host of other prominent Americans, including Sen. Barry Goldwater, Clint Eastwood, Burt Reynolds and tire magnate Leonard Firestone.

Over the course of a long and successful career, Wieghorst became the highest paid living artist of his time. He exhibited with success including at the Cowboy Hall of Fame (Gold Metal), Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art (Tulsa, OK) and the Grand Central Art Galleries of the Biltmore Hotel. His work can be found in prominent western collections including the Eisenhower Library, Cowboy Hall of Fame, ACM, the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum (Oklahoma) and the Whitney Gallery (Wyoming).

Artist quote:
"I try to paint the little natural things, the way a horse turns his tail to the wind on cold nights, the way he flattens his ears in the rain, seasonal changes in the coat of a horse, and the psychology of his behavior. Horses have been my life."

Reference:
Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Peter Hastings Falk, Sound View Press 1999, Vol. 3, page 3559; E. Benezit, Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs, et Graveurs, Jacques Busse, 1999 Nouvelle Édition, Gründ 1911, Vol. 14, page 595; Samuels’ Encyclopedia of Artists of the American West, Peggy and Harold Samuels, Castle, Book Sales, Inc. 1985 Edition, page 527-528; American Artists: An Illustrated Survey of Leading Contemporary Americans, Les Krantz, Krantz Company Publishers, Inc 1985, page. 331; Contemporary Western Artists, Peggy & Harold Samuels, 1985 Edition, Bonanza Books: New York, page 575; et al. See less