LeRoy Neiman

Born Leroy Runquist in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1921, Neiman studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and later the School of the Art Institute before settling in New York. His long association with Playboy magazine — which began in 1954 and continued for decades — brought his work to a mass audience, and his role as the on-air artist for ABC's Wide World of Sports and five consecutive Olympic Games (1972–1984) made him a household name. He painted Muhammad Ali, Frank Sinatra, President Kennedy, and the Super Bowl; his canvases appeared in casinos, corporate boardrooms, and living rooms across America. Neiman's signature style — bold, gestural brushwork in pure, unmixed color against rich dark grounds — was developed in the 1950s and remained consistent for six decades. He worked in oils, gouache, and felt-tip marker (his signature quick sketching medium), but his serigraphy prints became the primary vehicle for bringing his work to a broad market. Published in large editions through Knoedler Publishing and other houses, these serigraphy prints covered every corner of his subject matter — boxing, horse racing, polo, jazz, casino life, celebrity portraits — and are the Neiman works most commonly found at auction today. He died in New York in June 2012 and the LeRoy Neiman Foundation continues to support arts education.