Combining an incisive perceptivity and high dynamic range of light and color with the logical, curious mind of an aerospace engineer, Dick Heimbold has forged a singular aesthetic. He has been an award-winning and regularly commissioned painter for more than 30 years.
Heimbold’s art studies began as a teenager in New Jersey. Under the tutelage of the late Hungarian master Geza deVegh, a WPA-era art deco painter and sculptor. Heimbold learned the European tradition of oil painting, with emphasis on accurate drawing and strong compositional values. He went on to study at the Leyton School of Art in Milwaukee at the same time that he pursued an engineering degree at Marquette University.
After some early experiments in non-objective art during the 1960s, Heimbold began to concentrate on portraiture and figures while studying with Tony Sidoni, a protégé of Julian Ritter. Heimbold attended the art school of Sergei Bongart in Los Angeles, where he matured the color-driven palette that characterizes his work today.
Through the 1980s he continued to develop his own style in still life and portraiture. He served in Florida as the Director of Process Engineering on the Space Shuttle Program until 1987. After returning to Southern California, Heimbold became an artist member of the California Art Club and became active in Los Angeles art competitions. He has taken top prizes in competitions of the California Art Club, the San Gabriel Art Association, the Pasadena Presbyterean Art Show, the Business Men’s Art Association, and the Pasadena Fine Arts Association, among others.
In his recent work, Heimbold concentrated on series of paintings in single subject areas. These include the French Series (2000), begun during trip to Paris and Provence; the Maine Series (2000/2001), painted on summer trips to Cascadia National Park; the L.A. Chinatown Series (2002), painted during many plein air sessions there; two Mexican Series (2002, 2004), featuring cityscapes of San Miguel de Allende and scenes from the Sierra Gorda backcountry; a Nightscape Series (2003), based on Los Angeles nightscenes digitally photographed and processed for liberal studio interpretation; and the Panama Series (2005 and 2006) featuring the color and magic of his mother’s birthplace. In the last year he has undertaken an LA series capturing the atmosphere of the downtown and beach areas and is also actively at work on a series of plein air paintings of the magnificent Huntington Gardens.
Today Heimbold lives with his wife Ursula in Glendale, California, and paints daily.