The Carmel Art Association (CAA) is a

Not-for-profit arts organization A not-for-profit arts organization, also known as a nonprofit arts organization, usually takes the form of a not-for-profit organization, association, or foundation. Such organizations are formed for the purpose of developing and promoting the wor ...

and

gallery Gallery or The Gallery may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Art gallery ** Contemporary art gallery Music * Gallery (band), an American soft rock band of the 1970s Albums * ''Gallery'' (Elaiza album), 2014 album * ''Gallery'' (Gr ...

located in

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Carmel-by-the-Sea (), often simply called Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, founded in 1902 and incorporated on October 31, 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is known for its natural scenery and ric ...

. The CAA is Carmel's oldest gallery. It features the work of many local artists living on the

Monterey Peninsula The Monterey Peninsula anchors the northern portion on the Central Coast of California and comprises the cities of Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Grove, and the resort and community of Pebble Beach. History Monterey Monterey was founded in 17 ...

. Many of its members were early California artists. The CAA is a

501(c)(3) organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of t ...

. CAA was recorded with the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on May 10, 2002.

History

The CAA was founded on August 8, 1927, by a small group of artists who gathered at “Gray Gables,” the modest home and studio of Miss Josephine M. Culberston and Ida Johnson at the corner of Seventh and Lincoln in

. The originator of the plan was Jennie V. Cannon of

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

, who was a frequent visitor to Carmel and owned a summer cottage there. Nineteen artists found their respective paths to Carmel from all corners of the world. Each desired a greater sense of community, a spirit of collaboration, and a place to show their work. Before the meeting concluded, they had established an association with a mission “to advance art and cooperation among artists, secure a permanent exhibition space, and promote greater fellowship between artists and the public."

Pedro Joseph de Lemos Pedro Joseph de Lemos (25 May 1882 – 5 December 1954) was an American painter, printmaker, architect, illustrator, writer, lecturer, museum director and art educator in the San Francisco Bay Area. Prior to about 1930 he used the simpler name Ped ...

of Carmel was elected the first president of the CAA in August 1927. A constitution presented by Ada B. Champlin was accepted with some amendments. In late October 1927, the exhibition of 41 artists took place in Herbert Heron's Seven Arts Building in Carmel. Exhibitors were Mary DeNeale Morgan, John O'Shea, Percy Gray, Jennie Cannon, and others. The association filed articles of incorporation on January 26, 1934. Directors included John O'Shea, William Ritschel, Jo Mora, Paul Dougherty, Armin Hansen, Edda Maxwell Health, and Charlton Fortune. In 1933, the gallery was moved to its present location on Dolores Street, when the organization purchased the former studio of artist and playwright

Ira Mallory Remsen Ira Mallory Remsen (May 11, 1876 – November 29, 1928), known locally as Rem Remsen, was an American painter, playwright and Bohemian Club member. He was the son of Dr. Ira Remsen chemist and former president of Johns Hopkins University. Rems ...

(1876-1928), with a loan from businessman Barnet J. Segal (1898-1985). Architect Clay Otto designed and Michael J. Murphy did the expansion of the existing building in 1938. It is a two-story wood and adobe brick and concrete block framed art gallery. The sculpture garden in front of the building was designed by artist William P. Silva (1859-1948). The gallery was registered with the

California Register of Historical Resources The California Register of Historical Resources is a California state government program for use by state and local agencies, private groups, and citizens to identify, evaluate, register and protect California's historical resources. The register i ...

on May 10, 2002. The building is significant under California Register criterion 1, as the oldest, continuously operating artist-owned cooperative art gallery in California. Monterey Cypress

Exhibitions

One of the first CAA exhibitions was on June 3, 1928 at the Stanford Art Gallery of oil paintings and watercolors by 25 of its members. One of the paintings was by

Percy Gray Henry Percy Gray (1869–1952) was an American painter. Gray was born on October 3, 1869 into a San Francisco family with broad literary and artistic tastes. He studied at the San Francisco School of Design and later under William Merritt Chase ...

called "Coast Near Monterey".

Jo Mora Joseph Jacinto Mora (October 22, 1876 – October 10, 1947) was a Uruguayan-born American cowboy, photographer, artist, cartoonist, illustrator, painter, muralist, sculptor, and historian who lived with the Hopi and wrote about his experiences in ...

was active in the Carmel community and served on the board of directors of the CAA, where his sculptures were exhibited between 1927 and 1934.

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...

joined the CAA. On June 8, 1947, he participated as an art expert and juror in a contest sponsored by CAA that awarded high school students from Albany High School in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. On July 28, 1988, the CAA held an exhibition of paintings and graphics by six early members. Francis McComas was one of them.

Awards

The gallery has won awards in the following areas: * ''The Award of Excellence'' (Carmel Chamber of Commerce) * ''Best Art Gallery in Monterey County'' (

Monterey County Weekly The ''Monterey County Weekly'' (sometimes called the "Weekly," formerly the ''Coast Weekly.'') is a locally owned and independent newsmedia company founded in 1988. As per the publication's name, it publishes in print weekly, and since 2020 onli ...

) * ''Golden Pine Cone Award'' (

Carmel Pine Cone The ''Carmel Pine Cone'' is a weekly newspaper serving the city of Carmel-by-the-Sea and the surrounding Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Valley and Big Sur region of Monterey County in central California. Despite not having a digital presence, a PDF of t ...

)

Publications

* Carmel Art Association: Today. Author: Carmel Art Association, Carmel, Calif., 1988, * Carmel Art Association: its legends and legacies 1927–2007. Authors: Dick Crispo; Lisa Crawford Watson. Carmel, Calif., 2007, * Richard Lofton, 1908-1966: a painter's painter. Carmel, Calif., 2004, * John O'Shea and friends: John O'Shea, Burton Shepard Boundary, Theodore Morrow Criley : Carmel Art Association, August 5 through August 31, 1993. Carmel, Calif., 1993.

Notable members

References

External links

Carmel Art Association
website

and CAA {{Authority control Arts organizations established in 1927 Art in California Art museums and galleries in California American artist groups and collectives Arts organizations disestablished in the 20th century 1927 establishments in California