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Gallery Night Event—Oct. 18, 5-9 p.m., featuring a Gallery Talk with Chris Burger at 7 p.m.FREE admission
Sometimes called the “railroad industry’s very own Picasso,” Gil Reid’s work ranks among the all-time great railroad art. Gilmore Wiley Reid (1918-2007) was born in St. Louis but, following his service in the Second World War, made his lifelong home in Wisconsin where he practiced as a commercial artist for decades. Reid worked for Kalmbach Publishing in Milwaukee from 1956 to 1978 as assistant art director and illustrator for Trains and Model Railroader magazines. He also created illustrations for Amtrak’s annual calendars from the 1970s to the early 90s, among his other work for books, posters, and prints.
Reid’s longtime friends and collectors, Rita and Chris Burger, have established an archive of his art and Amtrak calendar work at the Grohmann Museum from which this exhibition is drawn. A railroader and rail executive for 39 years, Chris is perhaps best known locally for managing the Chicago & North Western’s Wisconsin Division, where he was the moving force behind the railroad’s “Good Will Ambassador” steam program in the 1980s. Over the course of his career, Chris both collected Reid’s work and commissioned numerous pieces for his annual Christmas cards.
Gil Reid and Friends is a must-see for any railfan. From initial sketches to printed product, the railroad art of this amazing watercolorist will be joined by other images or railroading from the Museum’s collection, including work by O. Winston Link, David Plowden, and others, including Chris Burger himself.
Be sure to catch this rare display before it leaves the station!
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
1000 N Broadway, Milwaukee, WI, United States, Wisconsin 53202
