'Coastal Sunset' by William Lees Judson, California Impressionist, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Académie Julian

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Signed lower right, 'W. L. Judson' for William Lees Judson (American, 1842-1928) and painted circa 1910.

Born in Manchester, England, … Read more Signed lower right, 'W. L. Judson' for William Lees Judson (American, 1842-1928) and painted circa 1910.

Born in Manchester, England, William Lees Judson immigrated to the U.S. with his family in 1852. He first studied under his father, John Randle Judson. During the Canadian Civil War, Judson enlisted in the Illinois State Militia and afterwards spent several years as a farmer in Ontario. In 1868, he returned to painting and studied with John B. Irving in New York City (1872-73) before moving to France for three years where he attended the Académie Julian, studying under Jules Lefebvre and Gustave Boulanger. Returning from Europe, Judson painted in New York City, Toronto and London, Canada until 1890 when he moved to Chicago.

After the Chicago World's Fair (1893), Judson moved to southern California where he taught at the Los Angeles School of Art & Design. Judson was an art professor at USC from 1896-1901 and, in 1901, founded the USC College of Fine Arts where he was Dean until his death in 1928. A co-founder of the The Arroyo Guild of Fellow Craftsman, Judson was an originator of the Arts and Crafts movement along the Arroyo Seco seasonal river in Pasadena and spearheaded a counter-cultural moment during LA's Technological Revolution. With his three sons, he also founded the Judson Stained Glass Studios in 1897, which are still in operation in Los Angeles.

Judson was a member of the San Francisco Art Association, Los Angeles Art Association, Laguna Beach Art Association, CA Art Club, Artland Club, Painters and Sculptors of Los Angeles and the Artists of Southern California. Over the course of a long career, Judson exhibited widely and with success including in London's 'Colonial and Indian Exhibition' (Canada, 1886, bronze medal), and at the Art Institute of Chicago, Thurber Gallery (Chicago, 1891), SFAA (1891-1916) California Midwinter Expo (1894), LAAA (1894), Chamber of Commerce (LA, 1894), California State Fair (1899, 1900), Blanchard Gallery (LA, 1900), Ruskin Art Club (LA, 1902-04), USC (1907, 1910), Alaska-Yukon Expo (Seattle, 1909), Steckel Gallery (LA, 1913, 1914), Friday Morning Club (LA, 1913), California Art Club (1914-27), Panama-California Expo (San Diego, 1915, bronze medal), Daniell Gallery (LA, 1916), Battey Gallery (Pasadena, 1917), California Liberty Fair (1918), LACMA (1918, solo), Painters & Sculptors of LA (1920-25), Southwest Museum (LA, 1921, prize), Kanst Gallery (LA, 1922), Artland Club (LA, 1927) and with the Artists of Southern California (1930). The artist's work can be found in the permanent collections of museums nationwide including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Bowers Museum (Santa Ana, CA), the Irvine Museum (CA) and the Orange County Museum (CA).

Reference:
Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Peter Hastings Falk, Sound View Press 1999, Vol. 2, p. 1773; Artists in California 1786-1940, Third Edition, Edan Milton Hughes: Crocker Art Museum, Sheridan Books 2002, Vol. 1, p. 602; E. Benezit, Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs, et Graveurs, Jacques Busse, 1999 Nouvelle Édition, Gründ 1911, Vol. 7, p. 631; Mallett’s Index of Artists, Daniel Trowbridge Mallett, Peter Smith: New York 1948 Edition, R.R. Bowker Company 1935, p. 221; Samuels’ Encyclopedia of Artists of the American West, Peggy and Harold Samuels, Book Sales, Inc. 1985 Edition, p. 257; Biographical Encyclopedia of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers of the U.S.: Colonial to 2002, Bob Creps, Dealer’s Choice Books, Inc. 2002, Vol. 1, p.724; Southern California Artists (Nancy Moure); California Impressionism (Wm. Gerdts & Will South); Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers (Fielding, Mantle); American Art Annual 1929; Out West, May 1913; California Design 1910; Los Angeles Times, 10-27-1928 (obituary). See less