John Paul Strain (born September 22, 1955) is an American artist specializing in art depicting American history. He creates hyper-realistic paintings of patriotic historical scenes, such as the American West, Civil War and D-Day, that are exhibited or used by institutions such as the US military, US Park Service and others. He has been compared as inheriting the mantle of 19th-century print makers such as Currier & Ives and Louis Prang. [1]
For the first 15 years of his career he painted numerous original oil paintings of the American West. [2] From the age of 21, Strain's paintings of landscapes, wild life paintings, and depictions of Indian life were represented by Trailside Galleries.
Strain began painting scenes from the American Civil War in 1991. [3] These Civil War historical paintings are larger and have more detail than his western paintings. According to Strain, each painting is meticulously researched and painted with such detail (Strain often wears a jeweler's magnifying glass and uses a two to three haired brush to paint most of the composition's intricacies), that one painting may require more than three months to create. [4]
Strain participates in Civil War reenactments. "I have been reenacting for many years. Currently, I am Captain of the 7th Texas Calvary. My unit has about 20 mounted cavalry men, and we participate in Civil War reenactments throughout the southwest. Working with men, horses, and equipment gives me insight into what life was like back in the 1860s. I know from experience how horse equipment should look when in use, or how a seasoned horseman carries himself in the saddle. I feel it really helps my art." -John Paul Strain. [5]
Other historical paintings by John Paul Strain include Spirit of Discovery, a rendition of the Lewis and Clark expedition, as well as three World War II representations: Bastogne, Omaha Beach, and Utah Beach. [4] More recently, Mr. Strain has composed three individual "Paintings of Paradise": Celarian Light House, Punta Sur Park Natural Reserve; Evening on the Plaza, Downtown San Miguel; and The Monument to Divers, Coast Road San Miguel. Inspired by his favorite vacation destination, Strain represents historical landmarks in the Caribbean island of Cozumel, Mexico. [4]
Author John J. Dwyer said that Strain "is roundly regarded as one of the greatest painters, living or deceased, of American historical art." [6] [ clarification needed ]
Reproductions of Strain's paintings have won the PICA Awards (Printing Industry of the Carolinas).[ clarification needed ] At the PIAG 2008 Awards in Georgia, Strain was awarded the 'Top Gold Award' for his painting New Year's Wish, and the 'Best of Category Giclée' for Fire In the Sky. [4] [ conflicted source? ] Strain was awarded the Henry Timrod Southern Culture Award (2010) by the Military Order of the Stars and Bars for his contributions toward the understanding, appreciation and explanations of Southern Arts and Letters, as a member of the Order. [5]
Strain has completed commissioned works for the United States Army, which are on permanent display at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, Fort McNair in Washington D.C., and the battlefield visitor's center at Normandy, France. [3]
Strain's painting, D-Day, a 50th Anniversary portrayal of the first Infantry Division's landing on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France on June 6, 1994, was commissioned by the Class Gift Committee of the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in April 1994. The painting is now on display in the Eisenhower Hall of the CGSC, and was reproduced in an edition of 1290 prints for the 1994 graduates. [5]
In April 2009, Strain was commissioned by the University of Alabama to paint a historical work for the Confederate Corps of Cadets assembling to fight the Union invaders in April 1865. [5] The finished work was unveiled at the annual Gen. John C. Calhoun Sanders Lecture Series on the University campus.
On November 22, 1998, Strain appeared in an interview on C-SPAN's Washington Journal Feature, where he discussed his inspiration and techniques as a historical artist. [7] On episode 18, season 5 of Extreme Home Makeover , Strain worked and painted on the set and donated a large original painting, 'Chatham House'. [8] "Along with renowned artist John Paul Strain, Ty looks at a photo of the original Chatham house to make sure they've gotten the details right. 'I want it to look kind of mysterious,' Ty says. Ty and Strain, who completed his work in less than a week, secure the framed canvas—the molding was painted silver—with French cleats." [9]
Strain's paintings have helped to raise funds for many historical restoration projects and battlefield preservation organizations. [4] [ conflicted source? ] The National Park Service uses Strain's paintings in their publications and at battlefield sites. [10]
Books by Strain
Books featuring art of Strain
Historical reenactments is an educational or entertainment activity in which mainly amateur hobbyists and history enthusiasts dress in historic uniforms or costumes and follow a plan to recreate aspects of a historical event or period. This may be as narrow as a specific moment from a battle, such as the reenactment of Pickett's Charge presented during the 1913 Gettysburg reunion, or as broad as an entire period, such as Regency reenactment.
The Battle of Olustee or Battle of Ocean Pond was fought in Baker County, Florida on February 20, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the largest battle fought in Florida during the war.
Fort Donelson was a fortress built early in 1862 by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River, which led to the heart of Tennessee, and thereby the Confederacy. The fort was named after Confederate general Daniel S. Donelson.
William Clarke Quantrill was a Confederate guerrilla leader during the American Civil War.
The Battle of Natural Bridge was fought during the American Civil War in what is now Woodville, Florida near Tallahassee on March 6, 1865. A small group of Confederate troops and volunteers, which included teenagers from the nearby Florida Military and Collegiate Institute that would later become Florida State University, protected by breastworks, prevented a detachment of United States Colored Troops from crossing the Natural Bridge on the St. Marks River.
American Civil War reenactment is an effort to recreate the appearance of a particular battle or other event associated with the American Civil War by hobbyists known as Civil War reenactors, or living historians.
Mort Künstler is an American artist known for his illustrative paintings of historical events, especially of the American Civil War. He was a child prodigy, who, with encouragement from his parents, became a skilled artist by the time he was twelve. Today he is considered the "best-known and most respected historical artist in the country."
The Battle of Tebbs' Bend was fought on July 4, 1863, near the Green River in Taylor County, Kentucky during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War. Despite being badly outnumbered, elements of the Union army thwarted repeated attacks by Confederate Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan's dismounted cavalry.
Fort Duffield is a Union American Civil War fort located outside West Point, Kentucky. It saw use in 1862, and was abandoned when it appeared that the war would never come near the fort. Ironically, John Hunt Morgan would in 1863 lead his Raiders right past the fort and may have been stopped had the fort not been abandoned.
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William Franklin Draper was an American painter and a lieutenant commander in the United States Navy.
The 18th Independent Battery Indiana Light Artillery, also known as Lilly's Hoosier Battery and Lilly's Battery, was a civil war regiment formed in Indiana during the American Civil War. The regiment was formed at the end of 1860 by 22-year-old Eli Lilly, an Indianapolis pharmacist. He had recruitment posters placed around the city and recruited primarily among his friends and classmates. The unit contained six 10-pounder Parrott rifles, and was manned by 150 men. The unit mustered in Indianapolis where it was drilled during 1861. Lilly was elected captain of the unit in August 1862 when the unit was deployed to join the Lightning Brigade commanded by Col. John T. Wilder.
Don Troiani is an American painter whose work focuses on his native country's military heritage, mostly from the American Revolution, War of 1812 and American Civil War. His highly realistic and historically accurate oil and watercolor works are most well known in the form of marketed mass-produced printed limited-edition reproductions, illustrated books, book compilations, museum and government collections. He is also a militaria collector.
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in Chicago, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalize of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg, Austria, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish–American War broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine–American War. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War were also illustrated by the company.
The American Civil War Centennial was the official United States commemoration of the American Civil War. Commemoration activities began in 1957, four years before the 100th anniversary of the war's first battle, and ended in 1965 with the 100th anniversary of the surrender at Appomattox.
The Kearsarge at Boulogne is an oil-on-canvas painting by Édouard Manet completed in 1864. It depicts the Union sloop-of-war USS Kearsarge anchored at the French resort of Boulogne-sur-Mer.
Conrad Wise Chapman was an American painter who served in the Confederate States Army from 1861 to 1865.
The commemoration of the American Civil War is based on the memories of the Civil War that Americans have shaped according to their political, social and cultural circumstances and needs, starting with the Gettysburg Address and the dedication of the Gettysburg cemetery in 1863. Confederates, both veterans and women, were especially active in forging the myth of the Lost Cause of the Confederacy.
The Civil War Trust's Civil War Discovery Trail is a heritage tourism program that links more than 600 U.S. Civil War sites in more than 30 states. The program is one of the White House Millennium Council's sixteen flagship National Millennium Trails. Sites on the trail include battlefields, museums, historic sites, forts and cemeteries.
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