Grace Hudson Museum

L. P. Latimer (1857 – 1941): A Retrospective Exhibition

November 19, 2005 – March 5, 2006

Geyser Peak

"Geyser Peak from McDonnell Creek, Sonoma County"
Oil painting by Lorenzo Latimer, 1887, 22" x 36 1/8"
Private collection of Chalk Hill Estate Vineyards and Winery, Healdsburg

L.P. Latimer (1857 – 1941): A Retrospective Exhibition opens at the Grace Hudson Museum on November 19, 2005 and runs through March 5, 2006. For nearly half a century, from the 1890’s until his death in 1941, Lorenzo P. Latimer was one of California’s most admired painters. He was best known for his watercolors of the redwood forests of northern California and Lake Tahoe’s high country scenery.

The son of a respected lawyer and judge, L.P. Latimer grew up in Windsor, California, north of Santa Rosa, where he developed a love for the beauty of nature. As a young man he enrolled in the California School of Design in San Francisco, the leading art school west of the Mississippi. It was there he met fellow student Grace Carpenter and they formed a friendship that lasted throughout their prominent careers. Even as a student, Latimer’s paintings were hung at the exhibitions of the San Francisco Art Association, and he developed a solid reputation as a talented artist. Grace Carpenter Hudson (1865 – 1937) soon developed her national reputation in Ukiah as the painter of Pomo Indian portraits.

Fish Hatchery Canyon, Ukiah, Mendocino County.

"Fish Hatchery Canyon, Ukiah, Mendocino County"
Watercolor by Lorenzo Latimer, n.d., 17" x 11 1/2"
Collection of Brewery Arts Center, Carson City, Nevada

In the Fish Hatchery canyon, Ukiah, California.

"In the Fish Hatchery canyon, Ukiah, California"
Water by Lorenzo Latimer, n.d., 20" x 14 1/8"
Private Collection

Throughout his career as an exhibiting artist, Latimer taught many students, taking them on sketching trips to scenic locations in northern California, including the Ukiah region. He painted in watercolor alongside his students and eventually came to prefer watercolor to oil as a medium for his exhibition paintings. His works won gold medals at the 1894 Midwinter Fair held in Golden Gate Park. By 1900, he had risen to the top of the San Francisco art world, becoming the leader of a group of gifted California watercolor artists that included Francis McComas and Percy Gray.

Like other painters of his time, Latimer captured the essence of local scenery, while infusing his subjects with his own personal style and vision. The exhibition includes examples of his highly-renowned redwood paintings, both in oil and watercolor. It also assembles a generous selection of his works depicting striking mountain scenery near Fallen Leaf Lake and Lake Tahoe, dramatic Yosemite scenes, serene views of Clear Lake, and the pastoral terrain near Ukiah and Winsor.

Pine and Rocks on the Tamarack Trail, Fallen Leaf, Lake Tahoe Region.

"Pine and Rocks on the Tamarack Trail, Fallen Leaf, Lake Tahoe Region"
Watercolor by Lorenzo Latimer, 1919, 14 1/2" x 11 1/2"
Collection of the Brewery Arts Center, Carson city, Nevada

The exhibition was organized by Alfred C. Harrison, Jr., President of The North Point Gallery in San Francisco. The initial showing at The North Point Gallery included more than forty major works borrowed from public and private collections. At the Grace Hudson Museum, an additional twenty paintings from the Museum’s collection and other local lenders will be shown. The exhibition is accompanied by a hardbound catalogue, L.P. Latimer, California Watercolor Painter by Alfred C. Harrison, Jr. with twenty color illustrations of Latimer’s works. Harrison has created an extensive research archive on the art of early California and has published numerous articles including one in the April 2005 Antiques magazine profiling Latimer. On Sunday, November 20, at 2 p.m., Harrison will present a slide lecture at the Grace Hudson Museum on L. P. Latimer’s career. Following the lecture there will be a reception where he will be available to sign exhibit catalogues.

On Tuesday, December 13, at 11 a.m., Marvin Schenck, Curator of the Grace Hudson Museum, will lead a tour of the exhibition for docents and museum members. He will draw upon Alfred Harrison’s catalog text and his own knowledge of California landscape painting to discuss Latimer’s career and painting technique.