Alton S. Tobey (5 November 1914 - 4 January 2005), American painter, portraitist, illustrator, muralist.
When he was only three his mother gave him a set of pencils, and Tobey began drawing. What was initially just a hobby and a game proved later to be the first stepts of a successful carier. His realistic portraits and especially his murals proved to be very popular, many of them being later reproduced in various forms, mainly prints.
Later in life he became both a teacher and an example for the struggling young artists, which he often helped and for whom he even established a scolarship.
He was passionate about history and about historical paintings, but chose to work in this genre in an unique and profoundly personal manner. He produced a series inspired by the life of General Douglas MacArthur, for the MacArthur Memorial Building in Norfolk.
A terrific portraitist, he painted several works, the characters being presidents, judges, artists and especially Albert Einstein, whom he met and who was a good friend of the artist. Tobey was also one of the most important American illustrators, producing the covers and hundreds of drawings for the Golden Books History of the United States, published in the '60. He also worked for several prestigious magazines, such as Life.
