Near Playa del Rey
ClassificationsPaintings-watercolors
Artist
Emil Kosa Jr.
(American, 1903 - 1968)
Date1930s
Made AtLos Angeles, California, United States, North America
Place DepictedLos Angeles, California, United States, North America
MediumWatercolor on paper
DimensionsApproximately: 14 1/2 × 21 1/2 in. (36.8 × 54.6 cm)
Framed: 24 3/8 × 31 1/4 × 1 3/8 in. (61.9 × 79.4 × 3.5 cm)
Framed: 24 3/8 × 31 1/4 × 1 3/8 in. (61.9 × 79.4 × 3.5 cm)
Credit LineAnn and Bill Cullen Memorial Collection
Object number2018.6.14
DescriptionEmil Kosa Jr. began taking art classes at a young age and once he was in his late teens decided to become a professional artist. In the 1930s, Millard Sheets encouraged Emil Kosa Jr. to pursue a national reputation as a California watercolor artist. Although he worked with pastels and pencil drawings depicting figurative subjects, Kosa is best known for his representational watercolors and oils. He was among the first California Scene style watercolorists to bring attention to the West Coast watercolor style. The Playa del Rey oil field was discovered in 1929, leading to a boom in drilling. The derricks captured here by Kosa offer just a glimpse of the sprawling infrastructure that sprung up to capitalize on the find. Many of Kosa’s paintings from this decade focus on similarly industrial subjects, reflecting a more somber tone which stands in stark contrast to other California Scene artists such as Rex Brandt.
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