California as Muse
The Art of Arthur & Lucia Mathews
Oakland Museum of California
October 28, 2006 – March 25, 2007
The Oakland Museum of California presents California as Muse: The Art of Arthur & Lucia Mathews, a major retrospective of the signature artworks, furnishings, and decorative objects by the couple considered among the outstanding California artists of the twentieth century.
Organized by Harvey L. Jones, senior curator of art, California as Muse includes nearly 150 works by Arthur Frank Mathews and Lucia Kleinhans Mathews, creators of what has come to be known as the California Decorative Style, a unique fusion of artistic European influences at the turn of the last century and the ideals of the International Arts and Crafts movement— in a California setting.
The exhibition includes the Mathewses’ light-filled landscapes, murals, and stained glass, carved frames and furniture, graphic design and illustrations, and decorative pieces. More than two-thirds of the objects are from the museum’s collection.
“Arthur and Lucia Mathews are among the most important rediscoveries from a long list of neglected California artists,” said Harvey L. Jones, “a result of (belated) attention from scholars and collectors to the art history of California. It has become the privilege of the Oakland Museum of California to maintain the artists’ visibility.”
Arthur Mathews (1860-1945) was born in Wisconsin; Lucia Mathews (1870-1955) was a native San Franciscan. The couple met in 1893 at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art, in San Francisco, where Arthur served as director and teacher. Lucia was enrolled in his women’s life class. Arthur was by then an established artist who had studied in Paris, where in 1886 he won the first Grand Gold Medal to be awarded at the Académie Julian in several years. Lucia had spent a year at Mills College before coming to the Institute. They married in 1894 and toured Europe in 1898-99, returning to San Francisco so Arthur could resume his teaching duties.
The 1906 earthquake marked a turning point for the Mathewses. In keeping with the philosophy of the Arts and Crafts movement, they sought to help rebuild San Francisco, incorporating aesthetic standards in the design and production of practical necessities. Gathering around them a loosely defined circle of like-minded artisans, architects, city planners, and dreamers, they threw themselves into the re-conceptualization of San Francisco.
With local entrepreneur John Zeile Jr., they established the Furniture Shop, which produced their designs along with commissioned work. Built on Zeile family land, at 1717 California St., the Furniture Shop was the first artists’ studio to open for business after the Great Fire. For 15 years the Mathewses successfully combined their art with commerce, serving commercial and residential clients.
The Furniture Shop was also home to Philopolis Press, which published the monthly magazine Philopolis (“published for those who care”) and books and ephemera (note cards, calendars, bookmarks) designed by Arthur and Lucia that are prized as collectors’ items.
Although the Mathewses did occasionally collaborate and shared a love of the rich, nuanced tones in nature, each had a distinctive style. Arthur was a traditionalist and man of his time, but also made many contributions to modern California art. His paintings and murals often drew on classical references, with mythological figures placed in idyllic California settings, dancing or admiring the bountiful land and vistas. His skills and prodigious output as an architectural designer, graphic designer, and painter defy categorization.
From the foundation of Arthur’s vision Lucia Mathews developed her own personal style and philosophy. Her work centered on images of children, botanicals, and landscapes. Lucia’s work may have proved more enduring vis-à-vis popular appeal and contemporary art sensibilities. Her portraits, painted screens, and floral studies seem remarkably fresh today.
An authority on the Mathewses’ lives and work, Harvey Jones has presented two previous exhibitions of their work at the museum, in 1972 and 1985. For California as Muse, Jones has published a companion book, The Art of Arthur & Lucia Mathews (Pomegranate, 2006), with a foreword by Kenneth Starr and an essay by Kenneth R. Trapp.
OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA
10th & Oak Streets, Oakland, CA 94607
www.museumca.org
