Bill Bartsch of Warwick, NY (formerly of New Paltz, NY) passed away at home in Warwick on July 9 at the age of 91.
Born in St. Paul, Minnesota on December 13, 1930, he graduated from the Minneapolis School of Art, Antioch College, and the University of Minnesota with Bachelor and Masters degrees in Fine arts. Museum and teaching jobs followed and then an academic appointment to SUNY New Paltz. At SUNY, he was the Director of the College Art Gallery, part-time teaching assistant, and finally a full-time Associate Professor of Studio Art.
Bill loved to travel. From trips with college friends to just about every major European city on $5 a day, to commissions that took him to the homes of wealthy patrons; Bill was an inveterate traveler; where he traveled, he painted. His many watercolors and oil painting are evidence of his talent and dedication to his passion for art. He exhibited widely and his works are exhibited throughout the Hudson Valley, Midwest and England in many private collections as well as in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. He was an accomplished artist whether working in pen and ink, watercolors, oils, or decorative faux painting. He was an excellent colorist, knowing how to mix colors to amazing affect. His talent in faux painting led to commissions in New York City, Tuxedo Park, England, and Warwick. Historic restoration was his forte and his talent is on public display in Warwick’s Old School Baptist Meeting House in Lewis Park where he painted the faux mahogany grain in the foyer, and in Boscobel in Garrison, NY where he faux painted chairs in the dining room.
We will all miss Bill; his dry wit, perfect taste, and talent.
He is survived by his nephew Robert C. Bartsch of St. Thomas Virgin Islands; niece Margit Ann Bartsch of San Diego, CA and great-niece Anastasia Bartsch of Lexington, MA. He was predeceased by his nephew John Carlson Bartsch (aka Jonathan) of Lincoln, MA.