Richard Florsheim

Richard Florsheim was an American painter and printmaker, born in Chicago, IL. He studied for a year at the University of Chicago, and with Aaron Bohrod in New York. Unwilling to attend a mainstream art schools, Florsheim managed to convince his father to finance his independent study in Europe. The multi-year venture lead to his work being exhibited at Salon des Refuses in Paris. 

Returning to Chicago in 1939, Florsheim took up lithography the following year. His career would come to a halt in 1942, as it did for so many, because of World War II. He enlisted in the Navy and served as a cartographer in the Pacific Theater. His service would lead to a number of war-themed lithographs upon his return. 

Florsheim was a strong advocate of artist rights. He helped found the Artists’ League of the Midwest and would serve as President of the Artists Equity Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting artistic opportunities and addressing economic issues that affected them. The organization was founded in 1947 with the help of more than 160 leading American artists, including Yasuo Kuniyoshi, the first President, John Marin, Edward Hopper and Thomas Hart Benton.