California Art History

with an emphasis on representational art

Other online texts and images

page 1 1894... through California...

page 2 Carmel... through Natural...

page 3 Ocean... through Wayne...

(above: Granville Richard Seymor Redmond, Talk On the Beach, 1931, Laguna Art Museum. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

Ocean View: The Depiction of Southern California Coastal Lifestyle, an exhibit held August 10- October 5, 2003 at the Laguna Art Museum. Accessed February, 2015.

Panama-California Exposition from San Diego Historical Society. Accessed July, 2015.

The Painters' Club of Los Angeles from California Art Club. Accessed July, 2015.

Peter Krasnow: Maverick Modernist  is a 2015 exhibit at the Laguna Art Museum which says: "Peter Krasnow: Maverick Modernist is the first museum survey of the artist's work in almost forty years."  Accessed 8/18

Poems Without Words is a 2019 exhibit at the Irvine Museum Collection which says: "The Poems Without Words exhibition features 42 paintings that explore California impressionist artwork through the framework of visual poetry. The lead artwork is titled Pergola at Samarkand, painted in Santa Barbara in 1921 by Colin Campbell Cooper (1856-1937). The painting portrays Samarkand Persian Hotel which was built in 1920 and was one of the most luxurious hotels on the west coast until it was forced to close at the height of the Depression. The exhibition also features works by Granville Redmond, Anna Hills and Jessie Arms Botke, among others."  Also see Jean Stern interview from Irvine Weekly. Accessed 7/19

Portals of the Past: The Photographs of Willard Worden is a 2015 exhibit at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco / de Young Museum which says: "This exhibition presents a survey of Worden's photographs from the first two decades of the 20th century, including views of San Francisco's coastline, Golden Gate Park, and Chinatown." Also see news release.  Accessed 8/18  

Potteries of California website includes biographies of potters and other historic information, from Potteries of Calfornia. Accessed July, 2015.

(above: Three vases painted by Franz Bischoff in 1901, 1903 and 1908. Collection of the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California. Photo by Jim Heaphy, 28 February 2015. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

Primal Nature: Animalia by Women in Post-War Claremont is a 2018 exhibit at the Claremont Museum of Art which says: "Animals, both real and fantastic, occupied an important place in artistic expression in mid- twentieth-century Claremont, appearing in the work of ceramists, painters, enamelists, and sculptors." Accessed 10/18

Radiant Impressions is a 2021 exhibit at the UCI Institute and Museum of California Art which says: "From California Impressionism to the Light and Space movement, California artists have been celebrated for their skillful rendering of the perceptual effects of light. Focusing on painters working in California throughout the 20th century, Radiant Impressions considers the ways these artists have engaged with light not only for its optical qualities but also for its power to infuse ephemeral moments with meaning and emotion. Whether the warm golden tones of the California sun or the intense glow of electric bulbs, light in these paintings communicates a sense of anticipation, celebration, rest, and reflection."  Accessed 12/21

"Regionalism - Its role in defining 'American Art'," an article by Jessica Bocinski, posted July 25, 2016 in the Art Collections at Chapman University blog. The article compares Regionalism to Abstract Expressionism. Accessed August, 2016

San Francisco Art Association from Wikipedia. Accessed July, 2015.

San Juan Capistrano Mission - sample of artists and works from askArt. Accessed August, 2015.   

The Significance of Mount Shasta as a Visual Resource in 19th and Early 20th Century California Art, by William Miesse. From Mount Shasta Companion, made possible through College of the Siskiyous and the California Community College Chancellor's Office. This is an in-depth online resource covering many aspects of California art history. Also see TFAO's California Representational Art History: Books for more information on this source. Accessed July, 2015.

"The Smoketree School: Painters respond to the call of the desert," by Ann Japenga, from Palm Springs Life / Winter-Spring 2011. Accessed 4/14

Society of Six, a group of historic Northern California artists, from AskArt.com. Accessed July, 2015.

Soluble Power is a 2017 exhibit at the Carnegie Art Museum which says: "California artists excelling in both oil painting and watercolor burst out from 1925-1955 with a new a popular approach for watercolor that was quintessentially Californian and was named The California Style. Gone was the pencil detailed English approach, replaced with using large sheets of paper, sweeping free brush strokes, bold color and strong, quick lines." Accessed 8/17

(above: William Wendt (1865-1946), The Bay, The Bar, The Sea, The Sea, 1925. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

The Summer of Love Experience: Art, Fashion, and Rock & Roll is a 2017 exhibit at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco / de Young Museum which says: "After exploring the place in which the counterculture germinated, the exhibition investigates the movement's aesthetic content. Largely drawing upon San Francisco's geographic location and colorful past, rock-poster artists including Griffin, Robert Fried, Stanley Mouse and others, and fashion designers such as Burray Olson and Jeanne Rose, layered stereotypical imagery of the American West alongside aesthetic styles borrowed from the Victorian era and Far Eastern cultures in their work, often in response to the city's growing music industry." Also see the press release for this excellent online presentation.  Accessed 4/18

Sunlight & Shadow: The Tradition of Plein Air Painting is a 2015 exhibit at the Irvine Museum which says: "In the early years of the twentieth century, California produced a unique artistic style which combined several distinctive aspects of American and European art. This style, which is often called California Impressionism or California Plein Air painting, after the French term for "in the open air", concerned itself with light and color. As a variant of the American Impressionist style, it focused directly on the abundant California light." Accessed 12/18

Surf Culture: The Art History of Surfing, an exhibit held July 28-October 6, 2002 at the Laguna Art Museum. Includes essay by Craig Stecyk. Accessed February, 2015.

Tongue-in-Cheek, an exhibit about humor and absurdity in Bay Area art held May 9 - July 19, 2015 at the di Rosa Preserve. Includes exhibit brochure with essay by Amy Owen, and news release. Accessed December, 2015.

Tree Speak: Interpretation of the Rustlings is a 2017 exhibit at the Claremont Museum of Art which says: "Tree Speak: Interpretations of the Rustlings presents visual interpretations, by artists working in the area, which ascend from the concept or image of trees and leaves in nature." Accessed 5/17

Upon a Painted Ocean: An Ode to the California Coast is a 2018 exhibit at the Irvine Museum Collection which says: "In addition to spectacular scenes of idyllic beaches, the exhibition includes several paintings of Santa Catalina Island, Coronado Beach, the rocky cliffs of Big Sur, views of San Francisco Bay, and two historic vistas of Crystal Cove, one of which shows the cove as a movie set, used as such since the early 1920s."  Accessed 12/18

(above: Guy Rose (1867-1925), Lifting Fog, Irvine Museum. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

Voices of Incarceration, an exhibit held January 25 - March 16, 2014 at the Laband Art Gallery at Loyola Marymount University. Includes works by "incarcerated artists who convey their unique perspectives from inside the prison walls and those of artists who confront the American criminal justice system from outside its walls." Accessed February, 2015

Wayne Thiebaud: 1958-1968 is a 2018 exhibit at the Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art which says: "Wayne Thiebaud: 1958-1968 is the first exhibition to focus exclusively on a specific phase of Thiebaud's practice, offering visitors a rare opportunity to reconsider his early work and its influence on the trajectory of 20th century American painting." Accessed 1/18

Weil Ware in the California Scene (1930s - 1960s) is a 2013 exhibit at the American Museum of Ceramic Art which says: "The pieces in this show characterize the boom of production ceramics that flourished in mid-century Southern California, the height of which saw over 600 ceramic factories producing a wide range of collectibles, dinner ware and household items." Accessed 10/18  

(above: Maurice Braun, The Wood Lot, c. 1920s, oil on canvas, 20 x 24 inches, Liveauctioneers.com. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

page 1 1894... through California...

page 2 Carmel... through Natural...

page 3 Ocean... through Wayne...

(above:  Maurice Braun, Mission Valley, 1919, courtesy Steven Stern gallery.  Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

Return to California Art History

Return to Individual States Art History Project

Do you know of additional sources whether online or paper-printed? TFAO welcomes your suggestions. Please send them to:

Links to sources of information outside of our web site are provided only as referrals for your further consideration. Please use due diligence in judging the quality of information contained in these and all other web sites. Information from linked sources may be inaccurate or out of date. TFAO neither recommends or endorses these referenced organizations. Although TFAO includes links to other web sites, it takes no responsibility for the content or information contained on those other sites, nor exerts any editorial or other control over them. For more information on evaluating web pages see TFAO's General Resources section in Online Resources for Collectors and Students of Art History.

*Tag for expired US copyright of object image:

Search Resource Library

Copyright 2022 Traditional Fine Arts Organization, Inc., an Arizona nonprofit corporation. All rights reserved.