Olaf Wieghorst
Western Art
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Olaf
Wieghorst (April 30, 1899, Viborg, Denmark – April 27, 1988,
California, United States) was a painter of the American West in
the vein of Frederic Remington and Charles Russell.
Wieghorst emigrated to the United States from Denmark in 1918
and lived the rest of his life there.
He spent his working career on mounted patrol with the U.S.
Cavalry, was part of a campaign that chased Pancho Villa back
across the border and the New York City Police Department Mounted
Division, with occasional interludes as a wrangler on ranches in
the western states. Wherever he went, he sketched and painted the
Western culture he loved, often selling his work as calendar and
magazine illustrations (such as Zane Grey's Western Magazine and
Hoofs and Horns, an honor he shared with other cowboy artists such
as Dan Muller).
Wieghorst eventually settled in San Diego County, California
and spent the rest of his life there working on his art. Many of
his works can be found on display at the Olaf Wieghorst Museum in
El Cajon, California (a San Diego suburb). |
