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Romance of the Bells: The California Missions in Art
September 29, 2004 - January 19, 2005
(above: Charles H. Harmon (1859-1936), San Luis Rey, oil on board, 30 x 46 inches)
Romance of the Bells: The California Missions in Art, an exhibition featuring paintings of California's historic missions, will be held at The Irvine Museum [1] from September 29, 2004 through January 19, 2005.
When people think of romantic California, the visual image
that often comes up is that of a gentle land, with rolling hills of oak
trees and wildflowers, dotted with buildings of weathered adobe walls and
red-tiled roofs. These and other idyllic images of old California are rooted
in the romantic period. of California's past that is.associated with the
missions. 
Twenty-one California missions and a number of branch missions (asistencias) were founded between 1769 and 1823, yet that brief period of barely 54 years would have a lasting effect on the artistic and social fabric of the Golden State. San Diego de Alcala was the first mission in Alta California. San Juan Capistrano, the seventh in the chain, was founded in 1776. Known as the "Jewel of the Missions," it has become the most renown and most romanticized of all California missions. (right: Edith White (1855-1946), Pala Mission, oil on canvas, 12 x 18 inches)
Joan Irvine Smith, [2] founder and President of our museum; states "The Capistrano Mission represents an important part of the history of Southern California and I believe it should be preserved and maintained for the benefit of generations to come. It is undoubtedly the most portrayed architectural structure in the art of California and probably in the western United States."
After the 1840s, many of the missions fell victim to neglect
and abandonment. Most destructive of all have 
been
the effects of California's frequent and at times violent earthquakes. While
the missions of California will never reclaim their historic character,
their beauty and majesty are with us still. They have been immortalized
by the scores of artists who captured the spirit, grandeur, beauty and romance
of the old California missions.(left: Theodore Wores (1859-1939),
Mission Santa Barbara, oil on board, 10 x 12 inches)
The exhibition is accompanied by a comprehensive book that offers a selection of articles by noted writers in the field of California history, including Gerald J. Miller, Pamela Hallan-Gibson, Dr. Norman Neuerberg, and Jean Stern, [3] art historian and executive director of The Irvine Museum. The book is richly illustrated throughout by approximately 90 color plates and 40 black and white illustrations. [4]
A prior exhibition of the Irvine Museum held in 2001, titled Along El Camino Real: The California Missions in Art also covered the relationship of art to the California Missions.
John Moran Antique and Fine Art Auctioneers says of the
catalogue for the exhibition:
(right: front cover of Romance of the Bells: The California Missions
in Art, published in 1995 by The Irvine Museum)
Notes:
1. In its first decade, The Irvine Museum organized 34 exhibitions, 14 of which traveled to one or more venues, and published 12 books in conjunction with various exhibitions.
2. On May 13, 2004, the California State History Museum premiered the "California's Remarkable Women" exhibit. The California State Capitol's web site contains a brief biography of Joan Irvine Smith prepared in conjunction with the exhibit.
3. The Art Institute at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and the Tucson Plein Air Painters' Society will present in 2005 Plein Air 2005. One of the jurors will by Jean Stern, Executive Director of The Irvine Museum . The web site for the exhibition contains a biography of Mr. Stern.
4. Maria Hetenyi has listed 10 books concerning the California missions, including Romance of the Bells.
Resource Library editor's note:
For biographical information on artists referenced in this article please see America's Distinguished Artists, a national registry of historic artists
Rev. 8/27/09
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