Dennis Anderson: Artist and duck hunter David Maass lived in the best of times and painted them all

MINNEAPOLIS - Fascinated from childhood about colors, and particularly about the coloring of duck feathers, wildlife artist David Maass was never more at home than in a waterfowl blind. It was there that the tawny hues of marsh grass often blended with the foreboding grays of an autumn sky to frame an incoming squadron of bluebills or canvasbacks, or mallards descending from above, wings backpedaling.

Maass was a duck hunter, and good one, whose experiences in a marsh lived in his mind's eye for days, months and years. Other waterfowlers might gauge a morning's success by the number of birds they bring home. Maass tallied his in memories, the collection of which was the muse that led him to his studio each morning to paint.

One of Minnesota's most celebrated wildlife artists, who twice won the federal Duck Stamp Contest and who was named Ducks Unlimited Artist of the Year a record five times, Maass, of Orono, died last Wednesday at age 96.

A passionate conservationist, Maass was born in Rochester and had the good fortune to paint ducks and other game birds at a time when such artistry was revered not only in Minnesota but nationwide.

Decades ago, the former Dayton's in downtown Minneapolis held a much-anticipated art show at which Maass and other wildlife painters of his day were celebrated like rock stars.

"That was a time when people were buying stacks of Dave's prints, and other artists' prints, and stashing them, believing they one day would be worth a lot of money," Maass' wife, Ann, recalled. "That's no longer the case, of course. But the timing of Dave's art career couldn't have been better. For a wildlife artist, it was perfect."

Largely self-taught, Maass was the son of a mother and stepfather who both hunted. He was just a kid when his parents first plopped their morning's limit of blue-winged teal, mallards and wood ducks on a table for cleaning. Inspecting the birds one by one, the young Maass was smitten by their differences - and by their florid plumages.

"I'm a wildlife artist today because I've always loved to draw and paint, and because I was raised by people who loved the outdoors," Maass once told me.

After graduating high school, Maass signed on with Jostens in Owatonna, where he designed rings and produced other artwork. On the side, he painted ducks and other wildlife before enlisting in the Marines in 1952 and later returning to Jostens.

He caught a break when, on a trip to New York City for Jostens, he showed some of his paintings to two big sporting outfitters, Abercrombie & Fitch and Crossroads of Sport, both of which agreed to carry his artwork.

Subsequently, organizers of the annual Ducks Unlimited banquet in New York City became fascinated with Maass' paintings, leading to a relationship with the conservation group that spanned more than 70 years and raised millions of dollars for wetland habitat.

Maass' first cover painting for Ducks Unlimited magazine, portraying a flock of bluebills, appeared in 1963.

"David was a true gentleman, a proud veteran of the Marine Corps, and the best wildlife artist of our time," said former Ducks Unlimited president John Tomke. "He was passionate about conservation and waterfowl, and he was very generous to Ducks Unlimited. His philanthropy and artistic talent left a legacy for this generation and future generations. He is one of Ducks Unlimited's legends."

Maass' artwork gained wide acclaim after the late Bill Webster of Frontenac, Minn., founded Wild Wings in Lake City, Minn., in the early 1970s. Specializing in art printing, Wild Wings published prints of "Backwater Hideaway," a Maass painting of mallards on Buffalo Lake in Minnesota.

The 450 prints sold out immediately. In the years since, more than 300 of Maass' paintings have been reproduced as prints.

Arnold Krueger was among Maass' admirers.

"I was in Minneapolis, and I saw four duck paintings in the window of a store that fascinated me, so I went inside to ask who the artist was," Krueger said after hearing of Maass' death. "They said it was this fellow Dave Maass and he lived in Owatonna. Well, I lived in Owatonna, so I looked him up.''

A much-heralded orchestra teacher at Owatonna High School, Krueger became fast friends with Maass, and until four years ago, they hunted together on opening day of every Minnesota duck season.

"After I retired, I bought some land near Le Center, where I keep about 50 wood duck houses," Krueger, 98, recalled. "I'm just moving off that property now, because I can't keep it up anymore. But for the longest time, Dave and I enjoyed hunting together. He didn't always want to shoot ducks. But he was fascinated by them, the way they flew and their colors."

Maass' most famous painting might have been "Jimmy's Point," which portrayed the place on Delta Marsh, Manitoba, where the late Jimmy Robinson, of St. Louis Park, kept his famous Sports Afield duck camp.

Maass tried to give the original of "Jimmy's Point" to Robinson late in Robinson's life. Robinson, who counted Ernest Hemingway and Clark Gable among his hunting buddies, also raised millions of dollars for Ducks Unlimited, and Maass wanted to show his appreciation.

"But Jimmy said no, a print would be good enough for him," Ann Maass said.

In addition to his wife, Maass is survived by a stepson, Paul Springmeyer; Paul's wife, Jenny Springmeyer, and their two children; and a daughter, Jenni Doyle.

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This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 3:44 AM.