M c C L E E S   G A L L E R I E S

ESTABLISHED 1845

Douglas Volk

1856 – 1935

Douglas Volk was born in 1856 in Pittsfield, MA, the son of American sculptor Leonard W. Volk.  He received early art training in Italy and Paris, and while still in his twenties, he exhibited in Paris and America.  In 1886, he founded the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts, and was the director until 1893.  He also taught at the Cooper Institute, the Art Students League and the National Academy of Design (of which he was a member).  During his career, Volk specialized in portraits as well as historical genre scenes.  In 1919, he was commissioned by the National Art Committee to go abroad and paint from life the portraits of King Albert of the Belgians, Lloyd George of England, and General Pershing, which were then  presented by the National Art Committee to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.  Volk died in 1935.