ANNA HILLS (1882-1930)
32. Spring in Laguna, 1915
Oil on canvas
Signed lower left
20 x 30 inches
27 x 37 framed
Provenance:
Private Collection, Seattle, Washington
Anna Althea Hills was a powerful force in the development of the art colony in Laguna Beach, California. Highly trained Hills studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and then the Cooper Union Art School in New York. After teaching for two years and working under Arthur Dow, she traveled to Europe where continued her education at the Academe Julian in Paris. The next four years she continued painting in France, Holland and the south of England.
Upon her return to the United States in 1912, she settled in Laguna Beach. There her paintings lightened in color becoming more impressionistic. The bright light and incredible scenery of Southern California dramatically influenced her. She was also an industrious organizer as well as a highly respected artist. Her amazing energy was a major force in founding the Laguna Beach Art Association. Serving as its president for six years, she is credited with leading the group to establish its first gallery. This gallery led to the development of the Laguna Art Museum.
Spring in Laguna, created just three years after her arrival in Laguna Beach, explodes with a symphony of color that is almost magical. Anna Hills was at her prime when she created this masterpiece. There is a general openness and brightness in the way she laid the colors side by side. She was not bashful in applying the paint, just the opposite; she used a heavy, thick application, which gives the picture an energetic rhythm of contours. Hills finest works are all completed with this type of short, dabbled brushstroke. Not only is this painting highly important because of its quality, but also because of the historical subject matter which is depicted. The pristine coastline of Southern California, specifically Laguna Beach looking towards Dana Point, is one of the most desirable subject matters collected from the California School of Plein Air Painters.
Works held:
Bowers Museum,
California; The Fleischer Collection, Arizona; The Irvine Museum; Laguna Art
Museum; Springville Museum of Art, Utah.
The Redfern Gallery
1540 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651 T: (949) 497-3356 F: (949) 497-1324 mail@redferngallery.com
at the Montage Resort and Spa
30801 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651 T: (949) 715-6193