Internationally acclaimed artist Gary Lucy, whose masterful paintings depicting American river life and historical scenes grace homes, businesses, and colleges nationwide, including the Missouri governor's office and mansion, passed away Thursday at his Washington, Missouri home following a brief illness. He was 76 years old.
"Gary put Washington on the art map," said Bill Miller Jr., publisher of The Missourian. "He was one of Washington's best ambassadors, often dropping everything to give visitors to town a personal tour of his studio and gallery. He was very respected for his artistic talents and for who he was as a person. He truly cared about Washington."
Born and raised in Caruthersville, Missouri, Lucy graduated from Caruthersville High School in 1965 before pursuing his passion for art at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, where he earned his degree in art education in 1969. After graduation, Lucy initially took a position as an elementary art instructor in the Washington School District, which brought him to the area that would become his lifelong home. However, after just one year of teaching, he discovered that his true calling was to become a full-time, professional artist.
Lucy began his artistic career painting wildlife art, but his deep appreciation for the Missouri River led him in a completely different and ultimately defining direction. "I lived at the river thinking about water, people, historic interpretation, telling a story," Lucy told The Missourian in a 2015 interview. "So I went to the library and checked out half a dozen books on the rivers and before I was through the first 30 or 40 pages of the first book, I had some great painting ideas."
Those initial ideas inspired Lucy to create his most famous series of paintings focusing on the Lewis and Clark expedition. The comprehensive series features six paintings in total and took Lucy seven years to complete: "The Departure from the Wood River Encampment, May 14, 1804," "Red and White Pirogues Traversing the Missouri River, 1804," "The Departure from St. Charles, May 21, 1804," "Foggy Morning on the Missouri River, 1804," "William Clark Writing in his Journal at Eagle Creek, May 23, 1804," and "Campsite at Tavern Creek, May 25, 1804."
For these historically significant paintings, Lucy conducted extensive research into the expedition's history, studying the uniforms and boats used by consulting various authoritative sources including the U.S. Army archives, the U.S. Naval War College, and the original Lewis and Clark journals. One of these paintings was even featured on an episode of the popular television game show Jeopardy, bringing national attention to Lucy's work.
Pieces from the Lewis and Clark series have been purchased by the United States Mint as well as the Smithsonian magazine, demonstrating the national recognition of Lucy's artistic and historical contributions. The United States Mint acquired the rights to three of the paintings, which they reproduced on limited edition coins. The Lewis and Clark paintings have been reproduced at least 250 million times around the world, making them among the most widely distributed American historical artworks.
Lucy's art made its television debut in 1992 when PBS's MacNeil/Lehrer Report spotlighted an exhibition of his work that was on display in the Old Courthouse in downtown St. Louis. The exhibition, which was viewed by more than 25,000 visitors, featured works from another of Lucy's significant series called "Inland Waterways: The Way West." This series was specifically designed to showcase how the inland waterways literally built this country, as Lucy explained in a 2012 interview: "Every major city in this country is either on a lake, a river or an ocean."
"The rivers were the main forms of transportation because prior to the Civil War there weren't any roads, and if there were they were dirt paths," Lucy elaborated. "Lewis and Clark just happened to be part of that story, they were a participant in the story because they used the Ohio River, the Mississippi River and the Missouri River for their transportation needs. It was very interesting to me because it told the transportation story that I was telling."
Throughout his distinguished career, Lucy's paintings have appeared on the History Channel, in various textbooks, and are displayed in numerous public spaces including his gallery and studio on Main Street in Washington, which tourists have flocked to for decades. His work has gained international recognition, with reproductions of his historical scenes being distributed worldwide.
"Art is what I do," Lucy told The Missourian in the 2012 profile. "I've never known anything other than getting up, going to the studio, having a cup of coffee and assessing the day's work. This is just my life, it's just what I do. It's been extremely rewarding – I mean 50 years, I've been painting art for 50 years, making a living off my art for 50 years, it's just so rewarding."
Lucy is survived by his wife Sandy, a former mayor of Washington, and his beloved dog Buddy. His passing marks the end of an era for both the Washington community and the broader American art world, as his detailed historical paintings served as both artistic masterpieces and educational tools that brought American river history to life for countless viewers across the globe.
