Henri Moser

Henri Moser is best known for his paintings of western landscapes. Many of Henri’s works are of Utah in particular. Henri painted in the Impressionist style, and often his works are done in bright, vibrant colors that catch the eye. He captured the glory of red rocks, fall colors, snow-topped mountains, and deep blue lakes. Henri was also a proficient portrait painter; however, his portraits are not as common as his landscapes.

John Henri Moser was born in 1876 in Switzerland. When he was a boy, Henri’s family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Utah. Henri developed an interest in the arts early in his life, however, he did not originally plan to study in the arts or make a career from them.

Henri moved to Montana in 1898 to work in a mine to save enough money to attend school. After he had acquired sufficient funds for his education, Henry moved to Logan, Utah to study Engineering at Utah State University. There, he found a teacher who encouraged him to pursue his natural aptitude for drawing. After he married in 1905, Henri attended Brigham Young College and was instructed by A.B. Wright. Upon completing his education in the United States, Henri was sent to Europe to learn the Expressionist style of painting so that he could teach it to pupils in Utah. While in Paris, Henri studied at the Académie Delacluse and the Académie Colarossi. During his studies, Henri met a young Spanish painter named Pablo Picasso and the two became friends.

Following his journeys in Europe, Henri returned to Utah where he taught art briefly before becoming a farmer in Idaho and painting in his spare time. Henri also traveled throughout the United States – to California and Texas – where he showed his work at exhibitions and painted scenes from his travels. Henri returned to Utah in 1929, painted a mural in an LDS chapel in Logan, Utah, and became the art supervisor for Cache School District for the next 20 years. Following that career, Henri exhibited his works throughout the 1930’s and 40’s. He passed away in 1951 at the age of seventy-four.