Dalhart Windberg (b. 1933), "San Gabriel River", oil on board, 9.5 x 12", frame: 15 x 18"

Provenance: The Estate of Joan and Herbert Hahn (San Antonio, Texas)

Born in Goliad County, Texas, Dalhart Windberg is a painter of romantic landscapes inspired by his travels throughout Texas, Mexico, Spain, Greece and other European countries. From childhood, Windberg's mother encouraged his art. He became a student of Texas painter, Simon Michael, who encouraged him to paint whatever strikes his fancy. Serving in the Army in post World War Europe, Windberg was inspired by the landscape and was horrified by its destruction of burned out buildings, "collapsed shells of once great city, and bodies piled up high and deep", and in 1967, quit 'working' as a professional sign painter in order to devote full time to this subject as well as still life through his own artwork. He developed a method of achieving smooth surfaces like the Old Masters by using diluted modeling paste to prepare his surfaces so that he could get the paint on quickly and with precision. He became a leading artist for American Masters Foundation, a U.S. print publisher. In 1979, he was named Texas State Artist, and many limited edition prints of his work have circulated under his business. He has written an instructional book titled "The Windberg Techniques of Oil Painting", and two biographies of him have been written: "In the Paths of the Masters", 1978, by Bruce Davis; and "Dalhart Windberg, Artist of Texas", 1984 by Jerry Allen Potter.