Provenance
Consigned to American Legacy Fine Arts by private collectors
Description
A prominent watercolorist during the Depression era of the 1930s and early 1940s, Phil Paradise was instrumental in establishing the California Style of Watercolor Painting. He was part of the California Scene Painting movement and American Regionalist Art. This colorful and complex bird’s-eye view exhibits the bold execution and experimental approach that was a hallmark of his style. In this painting, a crenelated tower dominates a village rising on a hill. The bay below is scattered with sailboats, and inscribed by a string of mountains. The work is an original mid-century-modern watercolor painting that depicts a colorful fishing village and port believed to be the island of Haiti, known as “the pearl of the Caribbean.” The work expresses Paradise’s vibrant use of color and compositional sense of energy. After the mid-1940s, Paradise traveled and lived in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean Islands, painting along the way. Paradise taught at Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles and Scripps College in Claremont, California. He was elected an Associate Member of the National Academy of Design in New York City and served as an elected president of the California Water Color Society.
Frame
Wood with gold gilt finish, made by Riegler & Sons. The work is mounted under clear acrylic with a single mat.
Artist Information
DAV, Benezit Vol. 10 p. 888, CAW p. 172, AIC p. 847 – 848, Whos2 p. 2516
In the 1920s, he studied at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles and later taught there, in addition to teaching at Scripps College.
On Verso
“Michael Johnson Fine Arts” label
“Katherine Norris Fine Art” label
“American Legacy Fine Arts” label
“Philip Paradise” white label
Framer Stamp: Riegler & Sons
Exhibited
Early California Masters: Paintings from the Katherine A. Norris Legacy Collection, American Legacy Fine Arts, Pasadena, California, November 12 - December 19, 2021
