Ezra Winter Wins the Prix de Rome

Ezra Augustus Winter 1886-1949

Chicago Evening Post (1910)

CHICAGO MAN WINNER OF ROME
ART PRIZE

Ezra Winter's painting, "The Arts"
Ranked first among works of many American Artists.

Award brings him $3000 - contested for by more than 200 students and artists representing most of the American and Foreign schools. The winner will receive his award at the rate of $1000/year and will live at the American Academy in Rome during the period.

Kenyon Cox and S.D.Millet were members of the committee which made the award.
In the contest a year ago, Mr. Winter was given second place.

Last year's winner, a young man named Wolff of Philadelphia was murdered in Rome a few months after he arrived. For several months he was reported as lost, and then after several weeks the body was found in the Tiber.

The final contest this year was held at the Art Institute. It lasted about twelve weeks. The contestants all sent in drawings and paintings. Then a select few were required to draw and paint certain things within a limited time. Finally, a still smaller number were asked to make schemes for a painting. The final test was the completion of the scheme.

"Ezra Winter came to us from a small farm near Traverse City Michigan. He studied at the Academy about two years and then began to work as an illustrator. There had never before been a winner who had so little art training. Some of the contestants had been in various schools for as long as twelve years"

(and he was also a member of the Palette and Chisel)

Which began a career in public art
that included murals in the Library of Congress




The John Rogers Clark
Memorial in Vincennes , Indiana







and the Guardian Building
in Detroit, Michigan