Folk figure. As the model for the solemn farmer in Grant Wood's iconic painting, "American Gothic" (1930), he is one of the famous figures in modern portrait art although his name is little known. He studied dentistry at the University of Iowa, graduating in 1894 and founding his first practice in Winthrop, IA. He moved to Cedar Rapids in 1901 where he established an office which he maintained almost until his death. It was here that Grant Wood, who was one of McKeeby's patients, approached him to model as the father of the farmer's daughter (modeled by Wood's own sister, Nan) in what is now one of the most famous and recognizable works of American art in the world.
Folk figure. As the model for the solemn farmer in Grant Wood's iconic painting, "American Gothic" (1930), he is one of the famous figures in modern portrait art although his name is little known. He studied dentistry at the University of Iowa, graduating in 1894 and founding his first practice in Winthrop, IA. He moved to Cedar Rapids in 1901 where he established an office which he maintained almost until his death. It was here that Grant Wood, who was one of McKeeby's patients, approached him to model as the father of the farmer's daughter (modeled by Wood's own sister, Nan) in what is now one of the most famous and recognizable works of American art in the world.
Bio by: Iowa Owl
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