Schuster, Donna (1883-1953).

Woman sitting on shore by Donna Schuster (1883-1953) 12" x 24", Oil/Canvas, Signed Lower Left Est.: $7,000 - $9,000 Sold by John Moran Auctioneers for $16,100 on 10/25/2005

Born in Milwaukee, WI on Jan. 26, 1883, the daugher of a wealthy cigar maker.

Schuster studied at the AIC and Boston Museum School under Tarbell and Benson.

In 1912 she joined Wm M. Chase on a painting tour of Belgium and, after her move to southern California the next year, she again studied with Chase in his summer class in Carmel. In 1923 she built a home in the Los Angeles hills overlooking Griffith Park at 2672 Glendower Avenue where she remained.

During the 1920s and 1930s Schuster taught at Otis Art Institute and was active as an organizer in several artists’ clubs and a founder of Women Painters of the West.

Her subject matter included harbor scenes, landscapes, figure studies, and Cezannesque water lilies in both oil and watercolor. Her early works show the influence of Monet and Chase; however, having studied with Stanton MacDonald-Wright, she later experimented with various modern idioms including Cubism and Abstract Expressionism.

On Dec. 27, 1953 a brush fire destroyed her hillside home trapping her inside.

Exh: Minnesota Artists, 1913 (gold medal); Blanchard Gallery (LA), 1914; LACMA, 1914, 1917, 1920, 1927, 1929; PPIE, 1915 (silver medal); Panama-Calif. Int'l Expo (San Diego), 1915 (silver medal); NW Exhibition (St Paul, MN), 1915 (silver medal); Calif. Art Club, 1915-33; SFAA, 1916; Woman’s Club (Hollywood), 1920, 1927; Calif. WC Society, 1921-42; Laguna Beach AA, 1924-30; LA County Fair, 1924, 1927; Friday Morning Club (LA), 1925; Ainslie Gallery (LA), 1926; Calif. State Fair, 1926; Bernay Gallery (LA), 1926; Artland Club (LA), 1927; Pasadena Art Inst., 1927; Ebell Club (LA), 1930; Artist’s Fiesta (LA), 1931; Palos Verdes Library, 1933; GGIE, 1939; Festival of Arts (Laguna Beach), 1949. In: LACMA; Downey (CA) Museum; Oakland Museum; Fleischer Museum (Scottsdale); Irvine (CA) Museum; Orange County (CA) Museum.
Source:
Edan Hughes, "Artists in California, 1786-1940"
American Art Annual 1913-33; Who's Who in American Art 1936-56; Southern California Artists (Nancy Moure); California Impressionism (Wm. Gerdts & Will South); Plein Air Painters (Ruth Westphal); Art of California, May 1991; Art in California (R. L. Bernier, 1916); Los Angeles Times, 1-3-1954 (obituary).