In 1888 the
family emigrated to the United States and settled in Chicago. The senior
Mr. Richter passed
away in a couple of years
and younger Henry had to support the family. He went to night school to
learn
English. He took a series
of labor type jobs, and in the process learned art to make paintings from
photographs. He became a
US citizen in 1894.
He attended an Art Academy,
which became the Chicago Art Institute. His painting went well, and in
1904
he opened a studio, and
exhibited his work widely. He was offered a teaching position in the Normal
School
of Colorado at Gunnison,
soon to become Western State College. When Arriving, the College was short
of
funds and staff, so he taught
art, German and the violin. He served as first violin in the College orchestra.
He painted several large
murals
for his classroom.
He took a leave of absence
in 1913-14 for more study in Europe. He cut his time short, returning to
the USA
in 1914, and the day he
arrived in New York, war was declared. He returned to his Gunnison teaching
position, and quickly had
several exhibitions of the new works he had painted in Europe.
In 1915 he married Catherine
Moore; they lived in the old La Veta Hotel. After a year of very little
for Mrs.
Richter to do, and Mr. Richter
with little time to paint, she asked to take over his teaching responsibility,
giving her husband the time
to paint. He took extensive sketching trips around Gunnison area, and was
known particularly for his
paintings of snow scenes.
In 1919 they took teaching
positions at Drake University in Des Moines in the college of Fine Arts
and she
in the College of Education.
The lure of the West called them and they moved to Long Beach, CA in 1920.
Mrs. Richter had a teaching
position at Polytechnic High School and Mr. Richter had a number of private
pupils, painted, and taught
art in night school at Poly High. Incidentally he was ill one evening,
canceled
his class on the evening
of the 1933 earthquake, and his classroom was demolished, empty of teacher
and
pupils.
The family which now included
Henry Jr. went to Europe in 1930 for a sketching trip which resulted in
many fine paintings. It
was cut short to avoid the growing Spanish revolution. The family was soon
joined
by daughter Elsa, and moved
in 1939 to the country type setting in Rolling Hills, in the southwest
portion
of the Los Angeles Basin.
There, Mr. Richter had a number of private pupils, painted and exhibited
extensively. He passed away
in 1960, just short of 90 years of age.
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