Neil Meitzler (1930–2009) was an American painter, well known in the Pacific Northwest for his landscapes and scenes of nature, rendered in a distinctive, modern style. He is often associated with the ' Northwest School' art movement.Forbes, Diane M.; ''Spectra, Stream, Strata: A Retrospective of Northwest Artist Neil Meitzler''; Donald H. Sheehan Gallery/Whitman College, 2010, Tarzin Ament, Deloris; ''Iridescent Light: The Emergence of Northwest Art''; University of Washington Press, 2002

Life and career

Meitzler was born Herbert Neil Claussen in

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality that is the county seat of and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The ...

, on September 14, 1930. Seeking work in the midst of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, his family moved to

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, where Neil began using his stepfather's last name, after his father died and his mother remarried. When he was twelve his family moved again, to

Orting, Washington Orting is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 9,041 at the 2020 census. It is located between the Puyallup and Carbon rivers in central Pierce County, approximately northwest of Mount Rainier. History The ...

(near

Tacoma Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, northwest of Mount ...

), and started a successful greenhouse flower-growing business. His mother and stepfather were devout

Seventh-day Adventists The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabba ...

. Meitzler had been interested in art from early youth, and wanted to be either a professional artist or a minister. After leaving high school he moved to

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, and eventually began working as a draftsman at

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

. While at Boeing Meitzler won first prize in an employee art show, which led to exhibitions at small galleries, some sales, and critical notice. While working as a set painter he met

Kenneth Callahan Kenneth Callahan (1905–1986) was an American painter and muralist who served as a catalyst for Northwest artists in the mid-20th century through his own painting, his work as assistant director and curator at the Seattle Art Museum, and his wr ...

, who became his mentor and teacher; he also befriended

Morris Graves Morris Cole Graves (August 28, 1910 – May 5, 2001) was an American painter. He was one of the earliest Modern artists from the Pacific Northwest to achieve national and international acclaim. His style, referred to by some reviewers as Mysti ...

Mark Tobey Mark George Tobey (December 11, 1890 – April 24, 1976) was an American painter. His densely structured compositions, inspired by Asian calligraphy, resemble Abstract expressionism, although the motives for his compositions differ philosop ...

, and other artists of the 'Northwest School'. Meitzler's early work was firmly rooted in traditional landscape painting, eventually showing the influence of mid-century Modern art, but it wasn't until his introduction to the "Northwest mystics" and Asian art that his work reached full flower. His landscapes, often featuring rocks and waterfalls, took on a soft, otherworldly glow, while blurring the line between representational and abstract art. Beginning in 1957, Meitzler worked as an exhibition designer at the

Seattle Art Museum The Seattle Art Museum (commonly known as SAM) is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The museum operates three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum in ...

.Neil Meitzler obituary, ''The Seattle Times'', Mar. 1st, 2009 His work was at its most popular in the Northwest from the late 1950s through the mid-70s, in which period he received several awards, appeared in two solo shows at the Zoë Dusanne Gallery and one at SAM, was included in several regional and national group exhibitions, and generally enjoyed strong sales at galleries in the Northwest. In 1977 he left the Northwest to work for the Seventh-day Adventist church's publishing arm on the East Coast; he continued painting, did commercial work, and taught art classes, but was mainly focused on family and religion in this period. Throughout his life Meitzler was torn by conflict between his homosexuality and his religious faith. A short marriage in the early 1950s produced a son, but ended acrimoniously. A happier marriage, to Marcia Dawson, who had two young daughters, lasted from 1972 to 1987. In his late fifties, divorced and with children grown, he again became interested in fine art, his later work at times reflecting a growing acceptance of both his religious and sexual orientation. In 1989 Meitzler returned to Washington, settling in Walla Walla, where he worked for a publishing company and lived with Ikune Sawada, a painter and master landscaper. The two built a comfortably eccentric home/studio with an elaborate

Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desig ...

in back, and spent much time in Japan. Meitzler continued to paint, exploring new stylistic directions and occasionally exhibiting. He died on Feb. 21st, 2009, after a struggle with

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

. A major, in-depth retrospective of Meitzler's career was presented at

Whitman College Whitman College is a private liberal arts college in Walla Walla, Washington. The school offers 53 majors and 33 minors in the liberal arts and sciences, and it has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9:1. Founded as a seminary by a territorial l ...

's Sheehan Gallery, in Walla Walla, in 2010."Neil Meitzler's Spectra, Stream, Strata in Sheehan Gallery"; ''The Pioneer'' (Walla Walla, WA newspaper), Sept.30/2010

Legacy

Meitzler received many awards throughout his life, including a National Council of the Arts Artists Grant in 1957. His work is found in significant private, corporate, and museum collections across the United States, including the

, the

Henry Art Gallery The Henry Art Gallery ("The Henry") is a contemporary art museum located on the campus of the University of Washington, in Seattle, Washington, United States. Located on the west edge of the university's campus along 15th Avenue N.E. in the Un ...

, the

Memphis Academy of Art Memphis College of Art (MCA) was a private art college in Memphis, Tennessee. It was in Overton Park, adjacent to the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. It offered Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Arts in Art Education and Mas ...

, the Washington County Museum of Art in Maryland,

Museum of Northwest Art The Museum of Northwest Art (also referred to as MoNA) is an art museum located in La Conner, Washington La Conner is a town in Skagit County, Washington, United States with a population of 965 at the 2020 census. It is included in the ...

in Laconner WA,

Whatcom Museum The Whatcom Museum is a natural history and art museum located in Bellingham, Washington. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Whatcom Museum has a three building campus that includes Old City Hall, Old Fire Station No.1, and The L ...

, Bellingham, the Jundt Art Museum at

Gonzaga University Gonzaga University (GU) ( ) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington, United States. It is Higher education accreditation in the United States, accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges ...

, and in the collection of the

Imperial Family of Japan The is the reigning dynasty of Japan, consisting of those members of the extended family of the reigning emperor of Japan who undertake official and public duties. Under the present constitution of Japan, the emperor is "the symbol of the State ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meitzler, Neil Painters from Seattle Painters from Oregon 1930 births 2009 deaths 20th-century American painters American male painters People from Orting, Washington 20th-century American male artists