August Holland the Artist
August
Holland was born June 23, 1928 in Sublette, Illinois.
Two days later his parents, August and Nellie took him home to Mendota
where his four- year-old brother, Delbert, was waiting for him. Mendota has been
his home ever since. Holland’s
interest in art began at about the age of six when he found that drawing was
more interesting than the three R’s. Holland
attended Holy Cross Grade School and Mendota High School.
After high school he went to the American Academy of Art in Chicago.
His father died when he was eighteen months old so they couldn’t afford
for him to stay in Chicago. He attended daily by riding the train. When
he finished art school a job was waiting for him at an advertising agency in
Mendota. Spare time was devoted to
fine art. Two years later he was
called into the service. Being an
artist, he was in the Regimental Head-quarters Company which was sent to Panama
because the Korean war was winding down. He met and married his wife, Judith in the early 60’s. They have three children, Lisa, Jeffrey, and August, Jr. During
his early years as an artist 1951-1961 he was in the Ivan Soritch Gallery and
the Edgewater Beach Gallery in Chicago. With
a penchant for getting his work into print he began seeking publishers.
Goes Lithographing in Chicago was his first.
They liked his work and commissioned him to do many paintings.
To keep the buyers from thinking they had only one artist August had many
pseudonyms from Boise Smith for western art to Sasha Khomoran for Indian art.
Later he added Donald Art and Bernard Publishing from New York.
Early 70’s brought Turner Manufacturing in Chicago into the picture. So
the 60’s and 70’s were spent satisfying publishers.
Usually August kept the originals and they went to the Merrill Chase and
Marshall Field Galleries in Chicago.
Since
the 80’s he has been shown in several galleries across the country. In
1986 August became acquainted with Charles
Vickery, renowned maritime artist. Vickery became his mentor and in 1988 when the advertising
agency closed Holland put his full efforts into his art.
Following his mentor’s lead he concentrated mostly on maritime
subjects- researching sailing ships, studying models, scrutinizing wave
patterns, and traveling to the east and west coasts to study the ocean but
continuing to paint in his Mendota studio which is in the middle of corn country. He became an artist member of the American Society of
Maritime Artists in 1992. In the 1990's, August Holland continued to receive recognition for his paintings of the great ships and seascapes. He was admitted into the Illinois Seniors Hall of Fame for his contributions to the arts at an event hosted by Governor Edgar.
"From Sea to Shining Sea", very popular print from the late 1990's
Presently Holland’s work can be found in Kavanaugh Galleries in West Des Moines, Iowa; Wally Findlay Galleries in New York, Palm Beach, and Chicago; Omell Gallery in London, England; Landmarks Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Winters’ Galleries in Carmel, California, and Waterfront Gallery in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
View Guestbook / Feedback / FAQ Questions / comments: contact Judith Holland at judy@augustholland.com Copyright ©, Judith Holland, all
rights reserved on all images on this site.
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While
in Panama he met the executive administrator of the American Embassy and was
asked to do the art work for propaganda to the Latin American countries through
the state department.
The
most popular of his prints was titled “The Pearl of Wisdom” printed by Goes
Lithographing.
