John Caspar Wild

John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America, an art book with 115 illustrations, complements Drawing Upon Stone: John Caspar Wild's Early Views of the Midwest, an exhibition opening at the Missouri History Museum in 2006.Wild, an expert painter and lithographer, produced some of the earliest known depictions of urban America.His paintings and prints of Philadelphia, Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Davenport, Iowa, among other sites, stand as valuable historical records of these cities in an era before large-scale industrialization changed their character.

Book cover of John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America
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John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America
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John Caspar Wild, expert painter and lithographer, produced some of the earliest known depictions of urban America in the nineteenth century. His paintings and prints of Philadelphia, Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Davenport, Iowa, among others, stand as valuable historical records of these cities in an era before large-scale industrialization changed their character. His art also served to advertise the cities of the rapidly expanding West.

The American career of John Caspar Wild began in 1832, when he arrived in Philadelphia from Paris to work as a painter, lithographer, and print colorist. In all the cities he called home, he recorded their appearance during a period of rapid growth. These images, like all of his separately issued lithographs, are extremely rare and can be found in only a few institutions.

This beautifully illustrated book presents Wild's paintings and prints for all to appreciate, and a catalogue raisonné identifies all of his known works. The author draws on his previous writings about Wildâ€"themselves based on specialized studies by earlier scholarsâ€"and adds much new information about the artist's early years in Philadelphia and his accomplishments elsewhere. This talented but largely ignored artist who died well over a century and a half ago is thus at last provided the recognition he deserves.

John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America

In 2007, the award was presented to John W. Reps for John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America .

In conjunction with the new exhibit, Drawing Upon Stone: John Caspar Wild's Early Views of the Midwest, author John W. Reps discusses and signs his new book, John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban America, at 2 p.m. Feb. 26 at the Missouri History Museum in Forest Park.Call 454-3150 for information.

John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of Nineteenth-Century Urban AmericaBy John W. Reps

Exhibition: Art into Enterprise: The American Views of John Caspar Wild

Books covers of: Stories from Before, The Boyhood Memoirs of A.E. Hotchner, Malindy's Freedom, and John Caspar Wild: Painter and Printmaker of the 19th Century Urban