We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ward Schumaker a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ward, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you feel you or your work has ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized? If so, tell us the story and how/why it happened and if there are any interesting learnings or insights you took from the experience?

At 22 years-old judges awarded me first purchase prize in the Governor’s Art Competition (in Nebraska where I was living). But when the governor and his wife saw it, they labeled the thing pornographic and refused to allow it into their collection. His wife called it the “dirtiest thing you’ve ever seen.” When reporters viewed the work, one asked: What’s dirty about it?” And the answer given was: If you don’t see what’s dirty about it, then you don’t have a dirty mind.”
I left Nebraska, took jobs as a singing waiter, a paper salesman, a postal worker, and a designer of Snoopy calendars and address books. At 35 I began illustrating and at 58 I began painting again. I was fortunate and got a good gallery immediately and have been painting ever since. I’m now 82.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

As an illustrator I worked for everyone: the New York Times, Süddeutsche Zeitung, The Washington Post and Le Figaro; The New Yorker, Poetry and Esquire Japan; Hermès, United Airlines and Herman Miller. As a painter, I’ve had 30 one-man shows—in San Francisco, New York, Shanghai, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Nashville. I feel my main education was from a much older brother who introduced me to limited edition books when I was very young; and later, from working for a furniture designer, Cedric Hartman. Nothing in my past makes common sense; but these two people awakened me to the idea of surprising, m uncompromising beauty.
At the same time, as an illustrator, compromise was so much of getting by; so I enjoy painting as I try not to compromise at all.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

When I decided to try to make it as an illustrator, I had to learn to draw things, people, products. I had been doing non-objective paintings and hadn’t a clue as how to work representationally. But I learned. At 35! At 79 I knew nothing about ceramics, but I began playing with clay and my first small sold 23 objects! I want constantly to remind myself that it’s never too late to learn new abilities. (Playing seems to be an important part of this. Enjoying, experimenting.)

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

In school I was never taught how to market my abilities or my work. I wish I had been given classes in how to make it professionally in this rather hard world.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ward-schumaker.squarespace.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schumakerward/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ward.schumaker.7

Image Credits

all work by Ward Schumaker