About the Artist

William A. Schneider

William A. Schneider is a full time, professional artist working in oil and pastel. Painting from life, he seeks to capture the emotion of a particular moment and place, and views figures, landscape or still life as opportunities to explore the effects of light on form.

Bill initially studied art at the University of Illinois at Urbana but upon graduation he began a career in the music business. In the mid ‘80s, he started a successful Finance career.

In 1990 he entered the Saturday Program at the American Academy of Art in Chicago “for fun”! He studied figure drawing with William Parks and oil painting with Ted Smuskiewicz for the next eight years. As he became more serious about his art, he continued his education through workshops with Master Artists including Carolyn Anderson, Dan Gerhartz, Scott Burdick, Harley Brown, Scott Christensen, Huihan Liu, David Leffel and Richard Schmid.

In 2010 he sold his interest in DiMeo Schneider and Associates (now named Fiducient Advisors) to become a full time artist.

William commented on his choice of media, “ I find that oil and pastel complement each other. I particularly love the way pastel lends itself to softer edges and an Impressionistic scintillation that captures the natural translucence of flesh!”

Bill’s work has been featured in numerous magazines and books and over the years has won many awards including: 1st Place in the Portrait Society of America’s annual Member’s Exhibition; the Prix de Pastel (Best of Show) in the International Association of Pastel Societies’ Biennial Exhibition; The John Steven Jones purchase award in the 27th Bosque Art Classic - his winning painting, “Morning Meditation” is now part of the Museum’s permanent collection.

Bill lives with his wife Caren, splitting their time between Crystal Lake, IL and Naples FL.

Recent Awards

2024 Pastel Society of Colorado Mile High Exhibition, The Caregiver, 3rd Place
2024 Pastel Society of New Mexico, Lamentation For Ukraine, 2nd Place
2023 Mid America Pastel Society True Colors Members Online, Lamentation For Ukraine 2nd Place
2023 Art Guild of LA-River Road Show, Red Queen, 3rd Place
2023 Degas Members Show It Tolls for Thee Award of Merit
2023 NOAPS Fall Online DePaul Rain Award of Excellence
2023 The Artists Magazine, DePaul Rain 1st Honorable Mention

Videos (Available in DVD or streaming format at PaintTube.TV)

Instructional Books

Oil Landscapes, Schneider, Hampton, Obermeyer, & Short, Walter Foster Publishing 2002
The Art of Oil Painting, Walter Foster Publishing 2003
Pastel II, William Schneider, Walter Foster Publishing 2004
How did you paint that? 100 ways to paint People & Figures, International Artist Publishing, 2005
Pure Color: The Best of Pastel, North Light Books, 2005

Magazine Publications:

The Long Game, The Artists Magazine, March/April 2022
Snow Days, Plein Air Magazine, February-March 2022
Life is an Adventure, Art of the West, January/February 2021
Copy from the Best, The Artists Magazine, February 2020
Painting and Music: The mystical Connection, Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, March 2020
Reignite Your Creativity, The Pastel Journal October 2019
Artistic Excellence, Southwest Art Magazine November 2018
To Blend or not to Blend, The Pastel Journal, Oct 2017
Capturing Emotions, International Artist Magazine, June-July 2015
Brushing Up, The Artists Magazine, June 2014
Painting With Light, Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, September – October 2013
A Portrait Demonstration by William A. Schneider, OPA, PSA, International Artist Magazine, June / July 2012
The Good Guys – Masculine portraits from six talented artists, Southwest Art Magazine, January 2011
Strategies to Organize the Elements of Your Paintings, Workshop Magazine, Fall 2010
Competition Spotlight, The Artist’s Magazine, April 2010
The Studio of William Schneider, Art of the West Magazine, July 2009
Painting the Mouth, American Artist Magazine, March 2008
The Eyes Have It, The Pastel Journal, January 2008
2007Guidebook of Art, (Cover image) Art of the West Magazine 2007
Self-Portraits: Journey Through The Looking Glass, Art-Talk Magazine April 2005
Master Portrait Artists’ Showcase, International Artist Magazine, February 2005
William A. Schneider, The Pastel Journal, February 2005
Start Your Collection, Southwest Art Magazine, April 2005
International Showcase of Master Pastel Painters, International Artist Magazine, Oct. 2004
It’s About Meaning, Art of the West Magazine, November 2004
Art Values, Southwest Art Magazine, November 2003