William J. Schaff Jr. is an artist and musician based in
Warren, Rhode Island
Warren is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 11,147 at the 2020 census.
History
Warren was the site of the Pokanoket Indian settlement of Sowams located on a peninsula within the Pokanoket region. The re ...
and
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the ...
. He is known for artwork for the bands
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
,
Songs: Ohia,
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock band which originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also loca ...
, and
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (informally referred to as The Bosstones and often stylized as The Mighty Mighty BossToneS) were an American ska punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1983. From the band's inception, lead vocalist Dick ...
.
[
"An electric turn with literary pop" (on Okkervil River albums),
Elisabeth Donnelly, Globe Correspondent, ''The Boston Globe'',
Sep. 2007, states "Rhode Island artist William Schaff", webpage:
]
BostonGlobe2007-09
Art
Much of Schaff's art deals with death and loss, as well as the consequences of, and responses to, human violence. Stories from the
Old Testament
The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
and scenes from
The Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europ ...
are recurrent in his art. Schaff works in
painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and a ...
s,
drawing
Drawing is a form of visual art in which an artist uses instruments to mark paper or other two-dimensional surface. Drawing instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, various kinds of paints, inked brushes, colored pencils, crayo ...
s,
collage
Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an Assemblage (art), assemblage of different forms, thus creat ...
s,
scratchboard
Scratchboard (North America and Australia) or scraperboard (Great Britain), is a form of direct engraving where the artist scratches off dark ink to reveal a white or colored layer beneath. Scratchboard refers to both a fine-art medium, and ...
s,
mail art
Mail art, also known as postal art and correspondence art, is an artistic movement centered on sending small-scale works through the postal service. It initially developed out of what eventually became Ray Johnson's New York Correspondence Scho ...
,
motion picture
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
s, and
comics
a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...
.
A graduate of the
Maryland Institute College of Art
The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is a Private university, private art school, art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, making it one of t ...
, Schaff has exhibited and lectured at numerous institutions, including the
United States Air Force Academy
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and U ...
, the
Rhode Island School of Design
The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...
,
Amherst College
Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educati ...
, and
East Carolina University
East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university, public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina.
Founded on March 8, 1907, as a Normal school, teacher training school, East ...
.
Music-related art
Schaff is a prolific artist for musicians and is best known for producing all the art for the
Jagjaguwar
Jagjaguwar is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin. Jagjaguwar is a label included in Secretly Group, which also include ...
releases of Okkervil River. In 2009, he was the subject of
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
's "Take Cover" feature, which discusses notable album art. In 2012, a book of Schaff's artwork, featuring introductions by
John Darnielle of
The Mountain Goats
The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite th ...
,
Will Sheff
Will Sheff (born July 7, 1976) is the frontman for the Austin, Texas-based indie band Okkervil River (1998–present). Originally from Meriden, New Hampshire, he is also a founding member and co-songwriter (along with former Okkervil bandmate ...
of
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, and Darren Jackson of
Kid Dakota
Kid Dakota is the musical moniker of Darren Jackson, sometimes accompanied live or in the studio by various band members.
History
Born in the small, isolated town of Bison, South Dakota, Jackson started performing as "Kid Dakota and the Tumbl ...
, was published by
Graveface Records
Graveface Records is an American independent record label from Savannah, Georgia, solely owned and operated by Ryan Graveface (who plays in the groups Black Moth Super Rainbow, Dreamend, the Marshmallow Ghosts and the Casket Girls). He has rele ...
. It includes a vinyl recording of previously unreleased songs by
Jason Molina
Jason Andrew Molina (December 30, 1973 – March 16, 2013) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Raised in northern Ohio, he came to prominence performing and recording as Songs: Ohia, both in solo projects and with a rotating cast of ...
.
Art discography
* 2021
Halfgrass ''Raw Hackles''
* 2021
Viking Jesus ''Before the Mutation''
* 2021
Zeb Gould ''Destroyer Deliver''
* 2020:
Jason Molina
Jason Andrew Molina (December 30, 1973 – March 16, 2013) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Raised in northern Ohio, he came to prominence performing and recording as Songs: Ohia, both in solo projects and with a rotating cast of ...
, ''Eight Gates''
* 2019
Stone Irr ''Performance''
* 2019:
Strand of Oaks
Strand of Oaks is the rock project by songwriter and producer Timothy Showalter. Originally from Indiana, he currently resides in Austin, Texas. His music has been classified as rock and folk, as well as folk rock.
Showalter has released seven ...
, map insert for ''Pope Kildragon'' reissue
* 2018
M. Lockwood Porter ''Communion in the Ashes''
* 2018:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, vinyl label decals for ''
In the Rainbow Rain''
* 2018
Goshen Electric Co. ''The Gray Tower/Ring the Bell'' 7"
* 2017:
Waxahatchee
Waxahatchee is an American indie music project, formed in 2010 by American singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield (born 4 January 1989), previously a member of P.S. Eliot. The band is named after Waxahatchee Creek, in Alabama, where Crutchfield g ...
/
Kevin Morby
Kevin Robert Morby (born April 2, 1988) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. A former member of Woods and the Babies, Morby has released seven solo studio albums: ''Harlem River'' (2013), ''Still Life'' (2014), ''Singing Saw'' (2016 ...
, ''Farewell Transmission/The Dark Don't Hide It'' 7"
* 2017
The Low Cards ''The Low Cards''
* 2017:
Jason Molina
Jason Andrew Molina (December 30, 1973 – March 16, 2013) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Raised in northern Ohio, he came to prominence performing and recording as Songs: Ohia, both in solo projects and with a rotating cast of ...
, ''The Black Sabbath Covers'' 7"
* 2017
Gian Luca & The Oak ''Flowers Never Grown''
* 2017
Andrew Cohen & Light Coma ''Unreality''
* 2016:
What Cheer? Brigade, ''You Can't See Inside of Me''
* 2016: Tyler Daniel Bean, ''On Days Soon to Pass''
* 2016
The Casket Girls ''Night Machines''
* 2016:
Jason Molina
Jason Andrew Molina (December 30, 1973 – March 16, 2013) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Raised in northern Ohio, he came to prominence performing and recording as Songs: Ohia, both in solo projects and with a rotating cast of ...
, ''I'll Be Here in the Morning/Tower Song'' 7"
* 2015:
Brown Bird, ''Axis Mundi''
* 2015: Heather Aubrey Lloyd, ''A Message in the Mess, Volume One'' EP
* 2014:
Swearing at Motorists, ''While Laughing, the Joker Tells the Truth''
* 2014:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''The Silver Gymnasium''
* 2014:
O'Death, ''Out of Hands We Go''
* 2014:
The Wooly Moon, ''The Mountain'' 7"
* 2014: Guy Capecelatro III, ''Scatter the Remains''
* 2013:
Allysen Callery, ''Mumblin' Sue''
* 2013
Junior Varsity Arson ''Waiver''
* 2013
Six Star General ''Hair Supply''
* 2013
Assembly of Light Choir ''Assembly of Light Choir''
* 2013
The Casket Girls ''The Casket Girls'' EP
* 2013:
Brown Bird, ''Fits of Reason''
* 2013: Dan Baker, ''Pistol in My Pocket''
* 2012
John 3:16 ''Visions of the Hereafter - Visions of Heaven, Hell and Purgatory''
* 2012
Our Orthodox ''We Are Not the Only Ones''
* 2012:
Brown Birdbr>
Joe Fletcher ''I Love You and I Miss You'' (Dan Blakeslee tribute album)
* 2011:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''Your Past Life As a Blast'' 7"
* 2011:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''Rider'' 7"
* 2011:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''Wake and Be Fine'' 7"
* 2011:
Brown Bird, ''Salt for Salt''
* 2011:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''Mermaid'' 12"
* 2011:
Kid Dakota
Kid Dakota is the musical moniker of Darren Jackson, sometimes accompanied live or in the studio by various band members.
History
Born in the small, isolated town of Bison, South Dakota, Jackson started performing as "Kid Dakota and the Tumbl ...
, ''
Listen To The Crows As They Take Flight''
* 2011:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
I Am Very Far''
* 2010
Our Orthodox ''Our Orthodox''
* 2010:
Monster Movie
A monster movie, monster film, creature feature or giant monster film is a film that focuses on one or more characters struggling to survive attacks by one or more antagonistic monsters, often abnormally large ones. The film may also fall under ...
, ''Everyone Is a Ghost''
* 2010:
Dreamend
Dreamend is an American, Savannah-based shoegazer musical group signed to Graveface Records, whose music is characterized by textured guitar work and prominent drums and percussion. Song styles range from post-rock to bluegrass. The group has been ...
, ''
So I Ate Myself, Bite By Bite''
* 2009:
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (informally referred to as The Bosstones and often stylized as The Mighty Mighty BossToneS) were an American ska punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1983. From the band's inception, lead vocalist Dick ...
, ''
Pin Points and Gin Joints''
* 2008:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''Lost Coastlines'' 7"
* 2008:
Kid Dakota
Kid Dakota is the musical moniker of Darren Jackson, sometimes accompanied live or in the studio by various band members.
History
Born in the small, isolated town of Bison, South Dakota, Jackson started performing as "Kid Dakota and the Tumbl ...
, ''A Winner's Shadow''
* 2008:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
The Stand Ins
''The Stand Ins'' is the fifth full-length studio album by American indie rock band Okkervil River, released on September 9, 2008. ''
* 2007:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
The Stage Names
''The Stage Names'' is the fourth full-length studio album by American indie rock band Okkervil River (band), Okkervil River, released on August 7, 2007. The album was recorded in Austin, Texas, with longtime Okkervil producer Brian Beattie, and w ...
''
* 2006:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
Overboard & Down'' EP
* 2006:
Monster Movie
A monster movie, monster film, creature feature or giant monster film is a film that focuses on one or more characters struggling to survive attacks by one or more antagonistic monsters, often abnormally large ones. The film may also fall under ...
, ''All Lost''
* 2005:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
Black Sheep Boy Appendix''
* 2005:
Dreamend
Dreamend is an American, Savannah-based shoegazer musical group signed to Graveface Records, whose music is characterized by textured guitar work and prominent drums and percussion. Song styles range from post-rock to bluegrass. The group has been ...
, ''
Maybe We're Making God Sad and Lonely''
* 2005:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
For Real (There's Nothing Quite Like the Blinding Light)''
* 2005:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
Black Sheep Boy''
* 2004:
Gravenhurst, ''Black Holes in the Sand''
* 2004:
Kid Dakota
Kid Dakota is the musical moniker of Darren Jackson, sometimes accompanied live or in the studio by various band members.
History
Born in the small, isolated town of Bison, South Dakota, Jackson started performing as "Kid Dakota and the Tumbl ...
, ''
The West Is the Future''
* 2004:
Sharron Kraus
Sharron Kraus is an English singer, songwriter and musician with strong ties to the US. Kraus was born in New York but grew up in Leicester, England. She has lived in Philadelphia and collaborated with American musicians, including Meg Baird, He ...
, ''Songs of Love and Loss''
* 2003:
Songs: Ohia, ''
The Magnolia Electric Co.''
* 2003:
Gravenhurst, ''
Flashlight Seasons
''Flashlight Seasons'' is the second album by the British singer-songwriter Gravenhurst. Originally released on a trio of labels - Red Square in the USA, Sink & Stove and Silent Age Records in the UK - it was re-released with new sleeve artwork ...
''
* 2003
Kitchen Cynics ''Parallel Dog Days''
* 2003:
Kid Dakota
Kid Dakota is the musical moniker of Darren Jackson, sometimes accompanied live or in the studio by various band members.
History
Born in the small, isolated town of Bison, South Dakota, Jackson started performing as "Kid Dakota and the Tumbl ...
, ''Get Her Out of My Heart'' 7"
* 2003:
Alec K. Redfearn and the Eyesores, ''Every Man for Himself and God Against All''
* 2003:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
Down the River of Golden Dreams''
* 2002
Alec K. Redfearn and the Eyesores ''Bent at the Waist''
* 2002:
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
, ''
Don't Fall in Love with Everyone You See
''Don't Fall in Love with Everyone You See'' is the first full-length studio album from alternative folk-rock group, Okkervil River. Released on January 22, 2002 on the label Jagjaguwar, it contains the single, "Kansas City". Artist William Scha ...
''
* 2000:
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock band which originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also loca ...
, ''
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven
''Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven'' (often shortened to ''Lift Yr. Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven'', ''Lift Your Skinny Fists'', or ''LYSF''), or on the rear of physical releases, is the second studio album by Canadian post- ...
''
* 1999
Alec K. Redfearn and the Eyesores ''May You Dine on Weeds Made Bitter by the Piss of Drunkards''
Music
Schaff led two acts as vocalist and songwriter, Reformation and Noel the Coward, and was part of the musical ensemble I Love You and I Miss You. He also played guitar and percussion with The Eyesores, The Iditarod, and Black Forest/Black Sea. Most recently, he was the drumming ape "Dead Chop Chop" in the
What Cheer? Brigade.
Fort Foreclosure
Schaff lives and works in a house that was passed to him by his father, but does not own it outright, and due to unsteady income, has been unable to consistently make payments. As a result, the house has been in
foreclosure
Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan.
Formally, a mort ...
multiple times and has been nicknamed "Fort Foreclosure" by Schaff and its other residents.
In an attempt to raise funds to solve the problem, Schaff launched a partially-successful
Indiegogo fundraising campaign in March 2014.
References
External links
The Artwork of William SchaffWhat Cheer? Marching Band"About the Artist: William Schaff"from
Austin Chronicle
''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...
.
"William Schaff - Lift Yr Skinny Fists"an interview in
Stylus Magazine
''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog.
Addi ...
"Under the Covers"from
Stylus Magazine
''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog.
Addi ...
"Unsettling Images/Artist's Images of Holocaust Horror Aim to Arouse"from
The Gazette (Colorado Springs)
''The Gazette'' is a Pulitzer Prize-winning daily newspaper based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. It has operated since 1873.
History
The publication began as ''Out West'', beginning March 23, 1872, but failed in its endeavor. ...
.
"An Electric Turn with Literary Pop"Schaff's cover art for
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They beg ...
discussed in a
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Gl ...
article.
"Take Cover: Will Schaff" December 2009 interview with Schaff on
Pitchfork Media
''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog.
Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...
.
Noisey/Vice profile - June 2016
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schaff, William
East Carolina University people
American artists
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Artists from Rhode Island