Lockwood and Huguette

Lockwood de Forest (Sr.) was already considered one of the best-known landscape painters in the United States when he made his first appearance in Santa Barbara in late 1902. Captivated by the landscape, he painted over 100 oil sketches of the countryside by February 1903. That month, 112 of them were exhibited at Mrs. Tadd’s studio at 1006 State Street.

The reviewer praised the rich tones of his color palette, his use of light, and the surprise of seeing the same scene painted at different times of the day. Regarding a painting of the sea, he said, “With a few strokes of the brush the artist has managed to convey the idea of immense distance, which makes one return for a second look.”

De Forest would return year after year to paint and in 1913 succumbed to Santa Barbara’s charms and purchased a homesite. He created plans for a large home that included a studio and exhibition gallery. Drawn in the offices of Windsor Soule, the plans included a large amount of East Indian ornamental teakwood carvings from the business in Ahmadabad, India, which he had created years before when he helped establish Associated Artists in New York. 

Huguette’s work is amazingly accomplished and her use of color, especially on the Japanese images, vivid and lively. Most telling are two self-portraits which reveal a confident and thoughtful young woman. Both exhibits are definitely not to be missed.

Ensconced in their new abode by 1915, the De Forest family became woven into the fabric of Santa Barbara society. De Forest continued to live and work and exhibit here for many years. Visitors to his studio, which opened onto Laguna Street, were invited to view his paintings and admire a handsome swinging teak seat suspended from four superb brass chains, ornamented with elephant heads. Today, his unique home at 1930 Santa Barbara Street is marked by a plaque commemorating its originator.

Currently, the Santa Barbara Historical Museum is exhibiting a collection of De Forest’s oil sketches and paintings, many of familiar Santa Barbara landscapes. The exhibit, Lockwood de Forest: Lighting the Way, presents, in part, an exquisite collection of his work donated by the late Kathleen and Oswald (Ozzie) da Ros, the celebrated Santa Barbara stonemason.

A second exhibit, Huguette Marcelle Clark: A Portrait of the Artist, graces the small sala and is a tremendous surprise! Tutored by Tadé (Tadeusz Styka), Polish-born portraitist of high society figures in New York City, William Clark’s daughter became a talented artist. This is the first exhibition of the copper heiress’s artwork since 1931 and is in collaboration with the Bellosguardo Foundation.

Huguette Clark had a studio in her home in New York and one at Bellosguardo. When the original Bellosguardo was demolished due to earthquake damage and a desire on her mother’s part to put men to work during the Depression, Huguette took a studio at the beautiful Meridian Studios, just two doors away from today’s Historical Museum, before returning to the new estate house and her new studio when it was completed. 

Huguette’s work is amazingly accomplished and her use of color, especially on the Japanese images, vivid and lively. Most telling are two self-portraits which reveal a confident and thoughtful young woman. Both exhibits are definitely not to be missed.

Though the exhibits have been on display since mid-February, a reception on Thursday, March 10, kicked off a series of talks and events associated with the artwork and the artists. On Wednesday, March 16 at 5:30 pm, Bill Dedman presented a talk on new information he has discovered about Huguette since his publication of Empty Mansions. On Wednesday, April 6 at 5:30 pm, Jeremy Tessmer, Director at Sullivan Goss – An American Gallery, will present a talk about Lockwood de Forest Sr., whose influence in Santa Barbara can still be felt today.  

Reservations are required. Visit sbhistorical.org. Also, the museum invites the public to enjoy wine and music in the courtyard and to visit or revisit the exhibitions as part of Downtown’s First Thursday activities on April 7.