Fred Machetanz (February 20, 1908 – October 6, 2002) was an

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

n painter and illustrator who specialized in depictions of Alaskan scenes, people and wildlife. He first came to the territory in 1935, when he traveled to Unalakleet to visit his uncle, Charles Traeger, who ran a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory in European and colonial contexts, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically a trading post allows people from one geogr ...

there and spent 2 years developing a portfolio of Alaskan scenes. After leaving Alaska, he spent some time as an illustrator in New York, but longed to return to Alaska. He returned in 1942 after volunteering with the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

and requesting a posting to the

Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; , "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before Alaska Purchase, 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was responsible for intelligence for the North Pacific Command. After the war, he trained for a short time at the Art Students League in New York, studying lithography under

Will Barnet Will Barnet (May 25, 1911November 13, 2012) was an American visual artist and teacher, known for his paintings, watercolors, drawings, and prints depicting the human figure and animals, both in casual scenes of daily life and in transcendent d ...

, and then returned to Unalakleet in 1946. Machetanz married Sara Dunn, a writer, in 1947, and the two settled near

Palmer, Alaska Palmer is a city in and the county seat, borough seat of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States, located northeast of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Matanuska Valley. It is the List of cities in A ...

in 1951. They published several books together and collaborated on films for

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, the

Territory of Alaska The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an Organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The ...

, and ''

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''. They also made many promotional and lecture tours through the lower 48 states from 1948 through 1960. The turning point in Fred's painting career came on April 21, 1962, when Bob Atwood, editor and publisher of the ''

Anchorage Times The ''Anchorage Times'' was a daily newspaper published in Anchorage, Alaska, that became known for the pro-business political stance of longtime publisher and editor, Robert Atwood. Competition from the McClatchy-owned '' Anchorage Daily News ...

'', arranged for a one-man show of his paintings. The works at the show sold quickly, and the success allowed Fred to pursue painting full-time.

Style

Machetanz was a strong

colorist In comics, a colorist is responsible for adding color to black-and-white line art. For most of the 20th century this was done using brushes and dyes which were then used as guides to produce the printing plates. Since the late 20th century it is ...

. He most often painted on

hardboard Hardboard, also called high-density fiberboard (HDF), is a type of fiberboard, which is a ''pressed wood'' or ''engineered wood'' product. It is used in furniture and in the construction industry. Description Hardboard is similar to particle ...

, which was prepared with layers of an

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blue base using a large brush. He then applied a transparent oil glazing technique to build up layers from there, emphasizing areas of color and form. This gave his works a cool, luminous quality that he felt reflected the environment of the Arctic. During his career, he produced fifty stone lithographs of scenes of Alaska.

Honors

He was named Alaskan of the Year in 1977, and American Artist of the Year in 1981 by ''American Artist'' magazine. Machetanz was also awarded honorary doctorates by the

University of Alaska The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-, sea-, and space-grant research university in College, Alaska, United States, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was e ...

and

The Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

. As a result of their philanthropic activities, several facilities are named for the Machetanz's including: the football field at Palmer High School, a building at Mat-Su College, a theatre in Wasilla, and Fred & Sara Machetanz Elementary School in Wasilla.

Family

Fred and Sara had a son, Traeger, in 1959 who practices law in

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

and

. Through Traeger, Fred and Sara are the grandparents of Alex (b. 1992) and Olivia (b. 1996.)

Books

* * * * * * * * *

References

External links

* * * * *
The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum: Fred Machetanz Collection guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Machetanz, Fred 1908 births 2002 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century American illustrators 20th-century American painters American male painters 21st-century American painters 21st-century American male artists Artists from Alaska People from Kenton, Ohio People from Palmer, Alaska United States Navy officers Art Students League of New York alumni 20th-century American male artists