Garnet Jex (1895 to 1979)
Born in Kent, Ohio in 1895, Jex was known not only as a painter, but as an illustrator, designer and photographer as well. He studied at the Corcoran School of Art and George Washington University where he earned both an A.B. and an MA. Throughout his career he worked at the National Zoological Park in Washington D.C; painted murals at the Smithsonian Institution, and George Washington University Library.
He produced photographs for the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. documenting the city before redevelopment began in 1936-37. Jex also painted may portraits of top athletes for the Touchdown Club, Washington, D.C. His paintings included landscapes and depictions of Civil War Battles. In 1926 he held the position of staff artist at Nature magazine. He also was a visual information presentation specialist for the U.S.Public Health Service, 1936-62. His teaching of landscape painting continued for many years and he taught graphic art at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Graduate School (1956-62).