Victor Denfrey Steele

Victor Denfrey Steele 1937-2008

Brief Bio:

Victor Denfrey Steele grew up in Haleyville, Alabama, loving three things; baseball, airplanes and art. His first career was as a Marine aviator and throughout his service Victor maintained his interest in drawing and painting. After retiring as Lt. Colonel from the Marine Corps at age 42, Vic studied for four years in Atlanta with Roman and Constantin Chatov, and briefly with Roman's son Marc. Roman and Constantin were Russian immigrants of the old school who painted portraits of Georgia notables for decades and are known for their elegant paintings of the nude figure.

Victor's work was heavily influenced by the Chatovs, but he evolved a slightly more impressionistic style. His figures, landscapes, and still life paintings are realistic in shape, form, and value, and the intensity of his colors were exaggerated or muted to suit his purpose. Vic then dedicated to his second career as a professional painter.

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,

I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air. . . .

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue

I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —

And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod

The high untrespassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

~ John Gilespie Magee, Jr.

When Earth's last picture is painted
and the tubes are twisted and dried
When the oldest colors have faded
and the youngest critic has died
We shall rest, and faith, we shall need it
lie down for an aeon or two
Till the Master of all good workmen
shall put us to work anew
And those that were good shall be happy
they'll sit in a golden chair
they'll splash at a ten league canvas
with brushes of comet's hair
They'll find real saints to draw from
Magdalene, Peter, and Paul
they'll work for an age at a sitting
and never be tired at all.
And only the Master shall praise us
and only the Master shall blame
And no one will work for the money
no one will work for the fame
But each for the joy of the working,
and each in his separate star,
will draw the thing as he sees it,
for the God of things as they are!
~Rudyard Kipling

Victor Denfrey Steele - American Artist

Pages

Cabbages and Corn

Waiting for the School Bus

Buffy Miller

Merry Christmas, Dad.

Girl with White Rose

Click to Enlarge

Dressing

Apples in Red Basket

Masterful Drawer

Marc Chatov Study

About

Victor Denfrey Steele 1937-2008

High Flight

Copyright

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