[2] In 1852 the family moved to Waveland in Montgomery County, Indiana, where Steele developed an interest in art and learned to draw.

Steele also studied briefly in Chicago, Illinois, and Cincinnati, Ohio, before returning to Indiana to paint portraits on commission.

The newlyweds immediately moved into a newly constructed, four-room home, which they named the House of the Singing Winds, on more than 171 acres (69 hectares) of hilltop land in Brown County, Indiana.

In 1880 the Steele family sailed to Europe with fellow Hoosiers J. Ottis Adams, Carrie Wolf, August Metzner, and Samuel Richards.

[15] In addition to training at the Royal Academy under the instruction of artists Gyula Benczúr and Ludwig Löfftz, Steele spent hours studying paintings of the Old Masters in Munich’s Alte Pinakothek galleries.

[18] Steele also used funds earned from painting copies of Old Masters to pay for several additional months before the family returned to Indiana in 1885.

[19] Upon their return to Indianapolis, the Steele family rented the Tinker mansion (Talbott Place) at Sixteenth and Pennsylvania Streets.

Steele kept a studio downtown, where he could paint and display his work while he earned a living primarily as a portrait painter and art teacher.

Around 1886 Steele had a studio built on the Tinker property, and the home, already an Indianapolis landmark, became a hub for the local arts community.

[21] His paintings included both urban and rural scenes and depicted changes of season as well as weather conditions of snow, rain, and sunshine.

[22] Steele's works show a "sympathetic" and "technical grasp of his subjects" with a "comprehension of the majestic aspects of nature" with "much feeling for the influence of light and atmosphere.

In November 1894 the Art Association of Indianapolis sponsored the Exhibit of Summer Work by Steele, Forsyth, Richard B. Gruelle, and Otto Stark.

Sponsored by the Central Art Association, the Indiana exhibit, called Five Hoosier Painters, expanded to include paintings by Adams.

In 1898 Steele and Adams bought a home in Brookville, Indiana, eight miles east of Metamora, so they could be closer to the area’s scenic beauty.

[31] In 1899 Steele became a member of the jury that selected American paintings for inclusion in the Paris Universal Exposition in 1900, a world’s fair expected to attract millions of visitors.

He entered several of his West Coast paintings in the Society of Western Artists’ Sixth Annual Exhibition, which was well received by art critics.

A year later Steele was invited to be a juror on the selection committee of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, the 1904 world’s fair at Saint Louis.

[36] At home in Indianapolis, Steele became actively involved in plans for the Art Association’s new museum, serving as chair of the acquisitions committee.

[37] In 1906 Steele sold his interest in The Hermitage at Brookville to Adams and returned to Indianapolis, where he remained active in the arts community.

"[40] Slowly, over time, the Steeles developed their Brown County property, acquiring additional acreage to increase it to a total of 211 acres (85 hectares) of land, and making further improvements to include an enlarged home and surround it with beautiful gardens, a barn-sized studio-gallery, and several other outbuildings.

[45] Steele kept a studio in Indianapolis, but his home in rural Brown County increasingly attracted visitors and other artists to the area.

On campus Steele kept a studio on the top floor of IU's University Library (now Franklin Hall), where he and his wife greeted visitors and students could watch him paint.