About Arthur Frank Mathews

  • Biography

    A central figure with his wife Lucia in turn-of-the-century, post earthquake San Francisco, Arthur Mathews devoted himself to reconstruction of the fine arts in the Bay Area. He had diverse talents that embraced architecture, mural painting, furniture making, printing, and urban design, and his style became known as California Decorative. His murals and paintings came to exemplify the Art Nouveau style. He was also a proponent of the American Renaissance style, based on classical disciplines and subject matter of the Italian Renaissance.

    In his allegorical paintings, Mathews often included female figures in classical dress and used a Tonalist approach with flat patterns and intense color. Described a...

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