Kurt Alexander Rueping

The Gallery seeks early (1930s- 1950s) artwork by Kurt Rueping - sorry, not interested in his later clown paintings. Contact us at: info@GalleryofWisconsinArt.com or 414-630-3600

BORN: February 7, 1909 in Fond du lac, WI

DIED: November 5, 1995 in Brookfield, WI

Born in Fond du lac, and the great-grandson of the founder of the Rueping Leather Company. His grandfather, Fred Rueping, arrived in America in the early 1800's and established a tannery in Beaver Dam, WI. It later moved to Fond du lac, where the factory grew to be one of the largest in the world. It ceased doing business in 1985.

Active in the German Club, Drama, and Art, Kurt graduated from Fond du lac High School in 1928.

It appears that he attended the University of Wisconsin and graduated in 1932 with an emphasis in Commercial Art.

He served in WWII and later graduated from the Chicago Art Institute and Academy of Art.

He became a highly respected artist working for Walt Disney in California for many years, but returned to Fond du lac, and is believed to have served on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

At some point he moved to the Milwaukee area (Shorewood),opened a sudio in his home, and started focusing on clown illustrations which he specialized in for the remainder of his life.

Regardless of genre or period, he exhibited widely throughout the s