Ralph Chesley Ott

Ralph Chesley Ott was a painter known for his portraits and murals; some of his best known works are in the Missouri State Capitol in Jefferson City.

Ralph Chesley Ott was born on June 24, 1875, in Springfield, Missouri. Ott’s interest in art began when he was a child. He showed a natural talent in drawing in elementary school, and continued drawing in high school. After graduating from high school in 1890, he went to the St. Louis School of Fine Arts and studied under John H. Fry and Edmund H. Wuerpel. He then went to Paris and attended the Académie Julian from 1895-1897, studying with Jean-Paul Laurens and Benjamin Constant. After his studies in Paris, Ott traveled to Florence and Rome, and in 1908 traveled to Spain to study Spanish artists. Later, he spent time in Egypt, compiling material for the preparation of the Egyptian Building in St. Louis.

In 1910, Ott returned to St. Louis and began to teach at the Art Academy at People's University in University City, Missouri, where he was the head of the Department of Painting. He painted murals in the Egyptian Building, now the University City Hall, and in 1922 he painted the mural, Power from the Hills, in the Capitol. While he was working on the Capitol mural, he shared a temporary studio in St. Louis with Frank Nuderscher, who was also working on a mural for the Capitol. Aditionally, he illustrated publications for the Lewis Publishing Company. While working for Lewis, he received a salary of $10,000 per year.

Ott was Missouri’s leading portraitist, painting portraits of eight Missouri governors, including William H. Harrison, Benjamin Howard, David R. Francis, Herbert Hadley, Elliot Major, Frederick W. Gardner, Arthur Hyde and Samuel Baker. Ott was commissioned to recreate paintings of the former governors of Missouri from photos or half-tones after a fire that destroyed the former capitol building in 1911. Ott also painted portraits of the governors' wives for the Governor's Mansion.

In 1925 he was chosen by the Missouri Capitol Decoration Commission to create the  mural Power from the Hills for the state capitol. He also has murals in two churches in Springfield: The Lord’s Supper at St. Paul’s Methodist Church and Resurrection at South Avenue Christian Church.

Throughout his life, he lived in both St. Louis and Springfield. Toward the end of his life, he also lived in Philadelphia.

Ralph Chesley Ott died in Springfield, Missouri, on September 30, 1931.