Chet La More Art

Chet La More was an American painter, sculptor, printmaker and educator. He was born in 1908, in Dane County, Wisconsin and grew up in Madison. He studied briefly at the Layton School of Art, before receiving instruction from Arthur Colt, a student of Charles Hawthorne. He attended the University of Wisconsin, earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art history and criticism, in 1932. La More opened his studio in Madison, where he focused on traditionally French-influenced portraits and figures. He was unable to make a living with his art in Madison and quickly realized how isolated he was from contemporary art movements. In 1933, he left Madison to travel to Baltimore, an intended stop, before settling in New York. He remained in Baltimore for three years, during which time, he met his wife. He picked up an assortment of odd jobs, including in late 1933, when he began working on art projects, under the Public Works program. He continued creating public works art projects and was hired as a mural painter, under the Treasury Relief Art Project (TRAP). In 1936, he moved to New York and continued to work on various projects under TRAP. He also became an active participant in the Artists’ Union. In 1939, La More had an exhibition at the prestigious Perl Gallery (New York). He relocated again, in 1942, this time to Buffalo, where he taught at the Albright Art School. He taught for one year, fought in the U.S. Army for two years and returned to Buffalo to teach for two more years. In 1947, he left Buffalo and settled in Ann Arbor, Michigan. There, he worked as a professor in art at the University of Michigan, until 1974. His works have been exhibited at several institutions throughout his career, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Carnegie Institute and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Chet La More died in 1980.