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| Matilija Poppies -Albert Valentien |
All art is
interconnected. The study and practice of sculpture can improve ones ability to
paint, while painting can improve ones photography. It is not unusual for an
artist to employ their talent over a spectrum of media. Albert R. Valentien was
an established pottery painter before he found a passion for painting flora in
La Jolla. His most extensive collection of paintings is in the San Diego Natural
History Museum.
Valentien was
born in Cincinnati, in 1862, and began his art education at School of Design at the University of Cincinnati. His favorite study was pottery decoration
and he became so proficient that by 1881 he was hired as the chief decorator at
Rookwood Pottery. He remained the chief decorator for over twenty years. Albert
and his wife, Anne, went to Paris for a while so Anne could study sculpture
from Rodin. Albert submitted some of his work to the Universal Exposition of
1900 and won the Gold Medal for his pottery decoration.
In the spring of 1903, the Valentiens
traveled to San Diego to visit family. They fell in love with the beauty of La
Jolla and San Diego and decided to stay. Albert discovered a passion for
painting flowers and produced 130 paintings of the local plants. These
paintings are now a part of the Cincinnati Art Museum. Not long after, Ellen
Browning Scripps, La Jolla resident and philanthropist, commissioned Albert to
paint the entirety of the California flora. The commission took nearly ten
years to complete and required that the couple travel all around the state
collecting specimens. In all, Albert Valentien painted 1,200 pieces. The
collection was donated to the San Diego Natural History Museum.
The collection
is one of the largest by any one artist on a single subject. Valentien truly
captured the beauty of the local natural flora. For more information on local
art in La Jolla, visit Thumbprint Gallery on Kline Street. The gallery is open
Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 12-4pm.
Source: http://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/v54-4/pdf/v54-4Stern.pdf
http://botanicalillustration.blogspot.com/2009/11/california-legacy-of-albert-r-valentien.html
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