Walter Ufer's Taos Society of Artists Membership and Southwestern Legacy

Walter Ufer's artistic journey took a significant turn in 1914 when he received a portrait commission from Chicago's mayor, Carter H Harrison. This opportunity led him to travel to Taos, New Mexico, alongside Victor Higgins. Supported by German American businessmen associated with Harrison, Ufer produced more than thirty paintings in locations such as Santa Fe, Chimayo, and Taos, drawn to the area's unique light and Pueblo heritage. In 1915, he encountered six fellow artists who would establish the Taos Society of Artists (TSA), to which he became a member in 1917. Founded by Bert Geer Phillips and others, the TSA aimed to promote Southwestern art. Ufer enjoyed early acclaim, including a 1914 exhibition at the Palace of the Governors. He passed away on August 2, 1936, due to peritonitis from a ruptured appendix, just two weeks after turning sixty.