David von Schlegell


David Von Schlegell was an American abstract artist and sculptor.

Life and career

Von Schlegell was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1920, the son of American impressionist artist William von Schlegell. He studied at the University of Michigan in the 1940s, and then entered the United States Air Force. He made his return to art when he joined the Art Students League in New York. In 1953 David married Mary W. Keep. They had four children, Lisa, Julia, Rosemary, and Anthony. After 11 years of marriage David and Mary separated and they were divorced November 9, 1976. In the early 1960s, David von Schlegell built his own sculpture studio in Ogunquit, Maine and later established himself as a prominent sculptor. He strted living with award winning American postmodern poet Susan Howe in 1966 and in 1967 their son Mark was born. David and Susan married November 30, 1976 and he became step-father to her daughter, now an abstract artist, R.H. Quaytman. From 1971 to 1990, von Schlegell was the head of the Yale School of Art sculpture department. He died on October 5, 1992 in New Haven, Connecticut at the age of 72. Students of note include Don Gummer, Roni Horn, Jessica Stockholder, Ann Hamilton, Matthew Barney, Sean Landers, and Katsuhisa Sakai.
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
in St. Louis, Missouri

Art

Sculptures

Inspired by his wartime experience as an aircraft engineer, he worked mostly with aluminum, steel, and wood. His indoor work was featured at many important exhibitions of the 1960s, and by the 70s he was a prominent public sculptor. His large scale works can be found in cities across America, including Untitled on IUPUI's campus.

Painting and drawings

In addition to sculpting, Von Schlegell also made paintings and drawings. After dedicating his Untitled , he also had an exhibition in IUPUI's Lecture Hall and at the Herron School of Art displaying his photographs and drawings from the project.

Featured works