RICHARD CALLNER was born in Benton Harbor, Michigan in 1927, and grew up in Chicago. He served in the U.S, Navy during the Second World War, after which he studied in Paris under Andre Lhote at the Academie Julien. Upon his return to the United States, Callner was associated with the Monster Roster; a  which explored group of Chicago-based artists exploring grotesque and mythological themes in their works. Upon competing his undergraduate degree at University of Wisconsin at Madison, Callner received an MFA from Columbia University before embarking on a teaching career at Purdue University, Olivet University, Tyler School of Art and at the State University of New York at Albany, where he led the art department and helped establish an MFA program in 1977.

Teaching at the university level for nearly forty years, Callner mentored and influenced several generations of younger artists. Exploring Jewish mysticism, Callner’s celebration of the myth of Lilith paid tribute to the Women’s Movement of the late twentieth century.  Electing to pursue a career outside of the fashionable New York art-world, Callner won international acclaim elsewhere. His works were acquired by museums in Russia, Turkey, the former Yugoslavia and museums across the United States including the Art Institute of Chicago, Detroit Institute of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Walker Art Center, Worcester Art Museum, Yale University Art Gallery, and others.

Read his Wikipedia biography here: LINK

 

The Richard Callner papers now reside at the Albany Institute of History and Art.

To honor the memory of Richard Callner, and to promote his creative legacy, the Callner Family Trust wishes to donate selected works of art to worthy research institutions that will preserve them, and make them available to researchers, students and the general public.

Inquiries are welcome. Contact: legacy@needlewatcher.com

Download PDF: Richard Callner Legacy Project 2021

Explore the Richard Callner Online Archive