The Art of Minerva Teichert

Fig. 1: Teichert 1913. The Miracle of the Gulls.

As artists I think we are all influenced, directly or indirectly but the art that has come before us.  For me, the art work Minerva Teichert is no exception.  

Minerva was born in 1888 and raised on a ranch in Idaho.  Without much else to do, her mother gave her her first set of paints when she was four years old.  At such a young age she would head off on her horse and paint what inspired her (Minerva Teichert Art 2020).  She is well known for her western depictions and also her religious works.  The western legacy is that of my ancestors and I have spent time worshiping in temples where her artwork adorns the walls.  But I am more influenced and connected to Minerva as a person.  What I connect with most in Minerva is that she was quite the advocate for women's rights, but in a unique way because it was not at the expense of her family, or more accurately, the woman's role in the family. She was a mother in the home and an artist and excelled at both. She represented an educated, intelligent, motivated and confident woman.  

At age 14 Minerva took a job as a nanny (then called a nurse maid) to save money to go east to school.  She graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1912. She then went on to study at the Art Students League of New York, under the well know and renowned artist Robert Henri, who deemed Minerva as one of his top three pupils. (Minerva Teichert Art 2020).  

Mineva married Herman Adolph Teichert and raised 5 kids on a family ranch in Cokeville, Wyoming. Minerva didn't sacrifice her family life for her art and found great satisfaction in both.  Painting was in her and she often found herself painting on scraps of wood or paper, often isolated from the art world and without a studio.  Still, she managed over 400 murals in her lifetime, in a variety of buildings and religious churches or temples (Minerva Teichert Art 2020).  Her brushstrokes are ones of emotion, light and hope.  

Fig. 2: Teichert 1939. Queen Esther.

Figure 1. Minerva TEICHERT. 1913. The Miracle of the Gulls. Minerva Teichert Art [online] available at: https://www.minervateichertart.com/about-minerva [accessed 27 May, 2020].

Figure 2. Minerva TEICHERT. 1939. Queen Esther. Minerva Teichert Art [online] available at: https://www.minervateichertart.com/about-minerva [accessed 27 May, 2020].


Minerva Teichert Art. 2020. 'About Minerva Teichert.' MinervaTeichertArt. Available at: https://www.minervateichertart.com/about-minerva [accessed 27 May, 2020].