'Steeplechase, Los Altos Hunt' by Frank Ashley, St. Martin's School, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Art Students' League, Carmel Art Association

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Signed lower left, 'Frank N Ashley' (American, 1920-2007) and painted circa 1985. Additionally signed, verso, and titled, 'Steeplechase, Los Altos … Read more Signed lower left, 'Frank N Ashley' (American, 1920-2007) and painted circa 1985. Additionally signed, verso, and titled, 'Steeplechase, Los Altos Hunt'. Bearing old label, verso, with inscription, 'Steeplechase, Bird Rock'.

A substantial equestrian painting showing an action view of steeplechasers and their jockeys, dramatically contrasted against an abstracted background of umber and burnt orange.

Noted for his equestrian and jazz subjects, Frank Ashley was born in Lincoln, Nebraska and grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. He first studied at the University of Minnesota and later attended St. Martins School of Art in London. Ashley continued his studies at the American Academy of Art in Chicago and the Minneapolis Art Institute. He subsequently moved to New York City where he studied with Reginald Marsh at the Art Students' League of New York and also acted as Marsh's assistant.

In 1955, Ashley married fellow painter and illustrator Betty Brader and, beginning in 1960, he began to focus on equine subjects. In the 1970s and 80's, he lived in Virginia where he painted local fox-hunting, racing, and steeple chasing events. In the 1980s, Ashley moved to Carmel, California, where he became an active member of the Carmel Art Association and changed his focus to subjects of jazz musicians and music in popular culture.

Over the course of a long career, Ashley exhibited widely and with success including at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, the National Academy of Design in New York City, the Santa Barbara (California) Museum, and several prominent galleries in the United States and England. He was the recipient of numerous prizes, medals and juried awards including first prize at New York's American Veterans' Show (1953), Grand Prize at the Art USA Show (1958), and the Alma Spreckels Award (1964). In 1957, he produced a large portrait for Alfred Hitchcock to be included in the movie Vertigo. The artist's work is held in numerous public and private collections, including the permanent collection of Syracuse University, the California Jockey Club and San Francisco State University.

Reference:
F. Turner Reuter, author of A History of Animal and Sporting Art in America: 1750-1950. See less