John B. Smeraldi (died May 14, 1947) was an Italian-born American muralist, and furniture and interior designer. He painted the ceilings of many buildings, including the ballroom inside the

Biltmore Hotel Bowman-Biltmore Hotels was a hotel chain created by the hotel magnate John McEntee Bowman. The name evokes the Vanderbilt family's Biltmore Estate, whose buildings and the gardens within are privately owned historical landmarks and tourist attracti ...

in Los Angeles, California.

Life

Smeraldi was born Giovanni Battista Smeraldi in

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

in December 1859, Sicily, Italy. He emigrated to the United States in 1889. Smeraldi began his career as a designer for Marcotte & Co. In 1921, he moved to Los Angeles to paint the ceiling of the ballroom inside the

. He also painted the ceiling inside the

Pasadena Convention Center The Pasadena Convention Center is a convention center in Pasadena, California. It consists of three buildings. Pasadena Civic Auditorium The Civic Auditorium, one of the major structures in the Pasadena Civic Center District, was built in 1931 a ...

, and he worked on the

Jonathan Club __NOTOC__ Jonathan Club is a social club with two California locations—one in Downtown Los Angeles and the other abutting the beach in Santa Monica. The club is routinely ranked as one of the top clubs in the world by Platinum Clubs of Amer ...

. Beyond California, his work extended to the New York Biltmore Hotel, the

Atlanta Biltmore Hotel The Atlanta Biltmore Hotel and Biltmore Apartments is an historic building located in Atlanta, Georgia. The complex, originally consisting of a hotel and apartments, was developed by William Candler, son of Coca-Cola executive Asa Candler, with ...

, The Breakers in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intracoas ...

, and Château Frontenac in

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...

, Canada. Smeraldi resided in Los Angeles. With his wife Maria, he had two sons and three daughters. He died on May 14, 1947, in Bayside, New York.

References

1947 deaths Artists from Palermo Artists from Los Angeles Italian emigrants to the United States American muralists American interior designers American furniture designers Painters from California {{US-bio-stub