Irving Ramsey Wiles

Harmsen Art Museum Foundation, Golden, Colorado

Denver Art Museum (acquired as a gift from the above in 2001)

Acquired from the above in 2009 by the present owner

Dorothy Harmsen, American Western Art: A Collection of One Hundred Twenty-Five Western Paintings and Sculpture, Denver, 1977, p. 245, illustrated in color

Born in Utica, New York in 1861, Wiles had a predisposition to art. His father, who painted landscapes, began Irving’s artistic education at a young age. Wiles went on to study under incredible artists, such as William Merritt Chase and, later in Paris, under Carolus-Duran, who also taught John Singer Sargent. Back in New York, Wiles focused his energy on teaching and illustrating, with his career taking off at the turn of the century. As the 20th century began, Wiles gained recognition for his talents as a portrait painter and received commissions from prominent clientele, like Theodore Roosevelt and William Jennings Bryan.