Leonard Reedy
b. 1899 - 1956
Leonard Reedy was a landscape and figure painter, born in Chicago, Illinois, April 24, 1899. He studied at the Chicago Institute and Academy of Fine Arts as well as self-taught.
At the age of ten he demonstrated an unusual aptness and fondness for drawing and painting and chose to manifest this talent by illustrating the margins of his schoolbooks with his heroes of the west: Indians, cowpunchers, and bandits. He was a great admirer of Frederick Remington whose portrayal of the West and Frontier Days will forever be appreciated and cherished as historically preserving the early pioneering, indomitable spirit and tradition of a great bygone era in American History.
Like Remington, Reedy lived in the ‘Great Open Spaces’ and was at home on the Great Plains, the desert country, mountains, as well as mining and timber camps. He worked as a ranch hand. He roamed with the Indians. Over a period of many years, he gained a bountiful knowledge of western life and of the subjects he loved to portray.
No doubt his great love and admiration for the early rough and rugged West of long ago decided for him what to paint. He preserved and described action which showed characters true to their habits and period; Frontier days of the plainsman; sagebrush; cactus and mesquite; The Gold rush; frontier towns; the stage coach; the hold up; the covered wagon; Buffalo Bill and the scouts; Soldiers and Indian warfare; the western trek of the home-seeker, fraught with constant danger; war-painted Indians on the warpath; the attack; bleached bones on the prairie; the tireless search for gold; all preserved the outstanding incidents of the pioneer days, the hardships and struggles during a most important epoch of our nation’s history.
1. Clay – Chavant Le Beau Touche. Get the regular clay, not HM (high melt).
2. Clay warming devices, a metal bucket with a clamp on heat lamp or 100 W bulb works great.
3. Tie wire.
4. Aluminum foil.
5. Scissors.
6. Favorite sculpture tools.
7. Plank of wood (pine) approximately 8″ x 8″ x 2″.
Bring as many planks as you wish…the wood is used as the base for your sculpture.
8. Plumber’s pipe, 1/2″ threaded: Bring several different lengths…up to 10″…not PVC pipe.
Plumber’s pipe T joint.
Plumber’s pipe couplers.
Plumber’s pipe flange.
9. Screws and screwdriver to secure the flange to wood…this may be done before you arrive. (Place flange in the center of plank)
10. Wire cutters
11. Needle nose pliers
12. Rubber mallet.
13. Spatula
14. Measuring devices such as rulers, measuring tape, dividers, and calipers.
15. Because we concentrate on BIRDS IN FLIGHT, live models in the classroom are more distracting than useful. I will demonstrate the technique of constructing a cantilevered bird armature that can be used for many different bird species and will show you how to assemble shapes to capture the “gist” of the specific bird.
16. Bird field guides such as Peterson, Stokes, Golden, or Sibley. Sibley’s Guide to Birds (not Sibley’s Guide to Bird Life and Behavior) is best if bringing only one field guide. This popular book can usually be purchased at any bookstore.
17. Bring your laptop to the class if possible.
18. Bring your sketchbook.
1 Lake Circle Colorado Springs, Colorado 80906
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