Artwork 12, 2026

Artist

Skip Wiese

🇺🇸 American

Leroy “Skip” Wiese is a man of many talents. The diversity of his work is truly astounding. He defies category or simple explanation. Skip was a professional artist who managed to make a living full time with his art from his early years fresh out of high school right up to the day died. He was born in Chicago and was a Waukegan resident for more than 60 years. He retired from H & R Studio, Chicago as a Fashion Illustrator in 1980 in order to devote full time to his work as a freelance artist. Within a decade he opened his first studio and gallery on Genesee Street, as well as showing at various “pop-up” galleries over time. Eventually he moved his studio to the Genesee Theater building and had two storefront galleries there. "Many people don't understand art. They'll look at a piece and

Leroy “Skip” Wiese is a man of many talents. The diversity of his work is truly astounding. He defies category or simple explanation. Skip was a professional artist who managed to make a living full time with his art from his early years fresh out of high school right up to the day died. He was born in Chicago and was a Waukegan resident for more than 60 years. He retired from H & R Studio, Chicago as a Fashion Illustrator in 1980 in order to devote full time to his work as a freelance artist. Within a decade he opened his first studio and gallery on Genesee Street, as well as showing at various “pop-up” galleries over time. Eventually he moved his studio to the Genesee Theater building and had two storefront galleries there. "Many people don't understand art. They'll look at a piece and say 'My kid could do that.' Well, that might be true, but what they really need to ask themselves is what the artist is trying to say." He showed artistic talent at an early age. When he was only seven years old he was already copying and sketching Smilin’ Jack comics. He always had in his own words “a natural knack for art.” He attended parochial school, which had at the time once–a-week art classes. He later attended Lane Technical High School and studied art three hours a day in various art classes offered there.
 While still in high school he enrolled in The Famous Artist School correspondence course and managed to build a modest portfolio, which later helped land him his first job. In 1951, after graduating from Lane Tech, he attended The Art Institute part time while serving a two-year apprenticeship in commercial art at H & R Studio—a downtown Chicago fashion art studio. At the time H & R Studio was one of the largest commercial studios in Chicago employing over 30 artists. In the 1950s there were quite a number of art studios in Chicago employing scores of young artists eager to learn commercial art and land a full-paying job. Many of these artists, like Skip, would apprentice in a downtown studio while taking classes part time at the Art Institute. Skip worked first as an apprentice and then “on the board” as a commercial artist for such clients as Sears, Marshall Field’s, and Carson Pirie Scott to name but a few. He learned plenty about technique. This studio shop experience allowed a teaching environment without formality. As apprentice, he could ask questions of his fellow shop artists such as “how do you do shiny lapels on a tuxedo?” And he would learn just how. For instance he was told to think of himself as a weaver when drawing fabric. It was a very hands-on approach. “You can’t really steal the idea, you only can take it and run with it and turn it into your own interpretation.” The wellspring of Skip’s work is vast—almost endless in scope. He had literally hundreds of art pieces spanning over 60 years work stashed in his home and garage studio. He worked in pencil, oil, watercolor, pastels, acrylic, mixed media, collage and many types of printmaking—you name it, the list goes on and on. He purposely didn't usually date his pieces, preferring instead to let them have a continuous life. And that is the purpose of this site; to continue on the life of his work and to share the many beautiful things he created. Enjoy!