John Bond Francisco, 'The Foothills of California, Tejon Ranch', circa 1929

John Bond Francisco (December 14, 1863 - January 8, 1931) was an American painter and violinist. He exhibited his paintings in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

as early as 1892 and he co-founded the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra in 1897.

Life

Francisco was born on December 14, 1863, in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. His father, Andrew Wiggins Francisco, was the editor of the ''Ohio State Journal''. Francisco graduated from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

, and he also studied in Paris, Munich and Berlin. Francisco began his career as a music teacher in Los Angeles, California in 1887. He exhibited his paintings in Los Angeles as early as 1892. Francisco was a member of the Southern California Art Club and the Laguna Beach Art Club, and he founded the Society of Fine Arts of Southern California in 1895. Two years later, in 1897, he co-founded the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra with

Harley Hamilton Harley Hamilton (March 8, 1861May 14, 1933) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He was the founder and first conductor of the LA Women's Orchestra in 1893 and of the LA Symphony in 1897. Hamilton was one of the first symphony Ame ...

, and he was its first concert master. Francisco resided at 1401 Albany Street in Los Angeles with his wife, née Nanette Louise Gottschalk. They had a son, Jack Bond Francisco Jr., and a daughter, Mrs Herbert McGaffey. Francisco died at home on January 8, 1931, at age 68, and he was buried in the Rosedale Cemetery.

Legacy

According to Peter J. Holliday, "Francisco was responsible for conferring respectability on the artist's calling in Los Angeles." For

Kevin Starr Kevin Owen Starr (September 3, 1940 – January 14, 2017) was an American historian and California's state librarian, best known for his multi-volume series on the history of California, collectively called "Americans and the California Dream." ...

, California's State Librarian, Francisco showed "that life could be lived for art in Los Angeles and Southern California with panache and financial success," and he "dazzled contemporary Los Angelenos and filled them with pride that Culture was at last coming to the Southland." In 1992, his grandson donated his papers to the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

Archives of American Art The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 20 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washingt ...

. His work can be seen at the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

References

1863 births 1931 deaths Artists from Cincinnati Musicians from Cincinnati American male violinists Musicians from Los Angeles Artists from Los Angeles Painters from California 19th-century American painters 20th-century American painters 19th-century violinists 20th-century American violinists 20th-century American male musicians 19th-century American male musicians {{US-violinist-stub