Maynard Reece
Encyclopedia
Maynard Reece is an Iowa
-based artist of wildlife, especially of ducks.
He has won the Federal Duck Stamp
competition a record five times in his life: 1948, 1951, 1959, 1969 and 1971.
on Lake Okoboji in northwestern Iowa. His father was a Quaker minister. The nature of his father's work meant that the family moved often, and this gave Reece exposure to many different aspects of American rural beauty. "Growing up on the marshes of northwest Iowa, Maynard Reece began drawing and painting with pencils and barn paints. His seventh grade teacher introduced him to watercolors, and he decided to become an artist.
In 1940, Reece moved to the capital city of Des Moines for work where he found a job in the museum of the Iowa Department of History and Archives. During his time there, he met Ding Darling, Iowa's most prolific and acclaimed political cartoonist of the time, who became a mentor to Reece's burgeoning talent in drawing.
, Sports Illustrated
, Saturday Evening Post, Sports Afield
, Outdoor Life
, Ducks Unlimited
and National Wildlife. Moreover, he has published two books devoted to his own wildlife art: The Waterfowl Art of Maynard Reece and The Upland Bird Art of Maynard Reece.
His art combines an accuracy of detail with a keen expressiveness of feeling. "Much has been written about the accuracy of Reece's artwork; every detail correct - feathers, position, wind, weather and weeds...These things are combined with a feel for color, a sensitivity to the moods of nature and the ability to dip back into the mental images of decades of outdoor observation to create a work of art which is much more than the sum of its parts."
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
-based artist of wildlife, especially of ducks.
He has won the Federal Duck Stamp
Federal Duck Stamp
The federal duck stamp was created through a wetlands conservation program. President Herbert Hoover signed the Migratory Bird Conservation Act in 1929 to authorize the acquisition and preservation of wetlands as waterfowl habitat....
competition a record five times in his life: 1948, 1951, 1959, 1969 and 1971.
Early life and education
Reece was born in Arnolds ParkArnolds Park, Iowa
Arnolds Park is a city in Dickinson County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,126 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 1,162 population in the 2000 census.-Geography:Arnolds Park is located at ....
on Lake Okoboji in northwestern Iowa. His father was a Quaker minister. The nature of his father's work meant that the family moved often, and this gave Reece exposure to many different aspects of American rural beauty. "Growing up on the marshes of northwest Iowa, Maynard Reece began drawing and painting with pencils and barn paints. His seventh grade teacher introduced him to watercolors, and he decided to become an artist.
In 1940, Reece moved to the capital city of Des Moines for work where he found a job in the museum of the Iowa Department of History and Archives. During his time there, he met Ding Darling, Iowa's most prolific and acclaimed political cartoonist of the time, who became a mentor to Reece's burgeoning talent in drawing.
Art
In 1948, Reece won his first Federal Duck Stamp competition. These are not postage stamps but rather stamps required for all waterfowl hunters to have in their possession when hunting waterfowl. He became a prolific and often-published artist. His illustrations have appeared in magazines such as LifeLife (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
, Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, Saturday Evening Post, Sports Afield
Sports Afield
Sports Afield was founded in 1887 as a hunting and fishing magazine by Claude King and is the oldest continuous outdoor publication in North America. The first issue, in January 1888, was eight pages long and printed on newspaper stock, published in Denver, Colorado...
, Outdoor Life
Outdoor Life
Outdoor Life is an outdoors magazine about hunting, fishing, survival and camping. It is a sister magazine of Field & Stream. Together with Sports Afield, they are considered the Big Three of American outdoor publishing. Outdoor Life launched in Denver, Colorado in January 1898. Founder and...
, Ducks Unlimited
Ducks Unlimited
Ducks Unlimited is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl, other wildlife, and people. It currently has approximately 780,000 members, mostly in the United States and Canada.-Introduction:Ducks Unlimited was...
and National Wildlife. Moreover, he has published two books devoted to his own wildlife art: The Waterfowl Art of Maynard Reece and The Upland Bird Art of Maynard Reece.
His art combines an accuracy of detail with a keen expressiveness of feeling. "Much has been written about the accuracy of Reece's artwork; every detail correct - feathers, position, wind, weather and weeds...These things are combined with a feel for color, a sensitivity to the moods of nature and the ability to dip back into the mental images of decades of outdoor observation to create a work of art which is much more than the sum of its parts."
Awards
- 1948. Federal Duck Stamp
- 1951. Federal Duck Stamp
- 1959. Federal Duck Stamp
- 1969. Federal Duck Stamp
- 1971. Federal Duck Stamp
- 1972. Duck stamp design for the state of Iowa
- 1977. Duck stamp design for the state of Iowa
- 1981. Iowa Habitat Stamp
- 1981. Iowa Trout Stamp
- 1982. Arkansas Duck Stamp
- 1983. Texas Duck Stamp,
- 1983. Missouri's First of State Turkey Stamp
- 1983. Ruffed Grouse Society's annual fundraiser
Publications
- The Waterfowl Art of Maynard Reece
- The Upland Bird Art of Maynard Reece.