Mission Valley Barn

ClassificationsPaintings-watercolors

Artist George Post (American, 1906 - 1997)

Datemid 20th Century

Made AtSan Diego, California, United States, North America

Place DepictedSan Diego, California, United States, North America

MediumWatercolor on paper

DimensionsApproximately: 14 1/4 × 19 3/4 in. (36.2 × 50.2 cm)
Framed: 25 × 29 1/4 × 1 3/4 in. (63.5 × 74.3 × 4.4 cm)

Credit LineAnn and Bill Cullen Memorial Collection

Object number2018.6.22

DescriptionGeorge Post was an American watercolorist and art educator. He was an important contributor of the California style watercolor movement of the mid-1920s to 1950s. Post became a committed watercolorist after viewing a show of watercolors by Stanley Wood in 1929. Part of what drew Post to watercolor painting is that it was not hard for him to pack up his meager supplies and take it with him anywhere. After World War II, George Post started using a wide flat brush which, when tilted at a particular angle, laid down thick, transparent, bold lines as can be seen in Mission Valley Barn. He developed during this time a personal style of geometric abstraction that was carefully planned and executed and was formed by his angular strokes. George Post was considered a progressive and modern artist, and his geometric abstractionist works were well received in art circles throughout California as his goals were to capture the feeling and essence of the design rather than to produce a realistic picture. The usage of light in the painting creatively casts shadows and brings other items to light. This painting is most likely from before the 1960s, because it was in the 1960s that he started to bring a calligraphy element into his work, and that element is not seen within this painting.

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