Swinnerton, James (1875-1974).

Monument Valley-Mittens by James Swinnerton (1875-1974) 30" x 40", Oil/Canvas, Signed Est.: $10,000 - $15,000 Sold by John Moran Auctioneers for $10,450 on 6/17/2003

Born in Eureka, CA on Nov. 13, 1875.

Swinnerton was raised in Santa Clara and began his art studies at the San Francisco School of Design under Emil Carlsen.

At 17 he was employed as a cartoonist for the San Francisco Examiner and then moved to NYC where he continued as a cartoonist for Hearst newspapers. He became famous for such cartoons as "Little Jimmy," "Canyon Kiddies," and "Little Tiger."

Sick with tuberculosis, in 1903 he moved to Palm Springs, CA to recuperate. The desert restored his health and inspired him to become a landscape painter.

His early works were often signed with a large red "S." His best works were produced in the 1920s.

He maintained a home in Palo Alto while traveling throughout the Southwest painting desert scenes. He made frequent trips to the Navajo country where Swinnerton Arch in Monument Valley is named for him.

Swinnerton died in Palm Springs on Sept. 5, 1974.

Member: Calif. Art Club; Bohemian Club (pres. 1929).

Exh: Calif. State Fair, 1890; Rabjohn & Morcom Gallery (SF), 1921 (solo); Bohemian Club, 1922; SFAA, 1923; Stendahl Gallery (LA), 1927; Pasadena Public Library, 1928; Biltmore Salon (LA), 1934; Foundation of Western Art (LA), 1934; Academy of Western Painters (LA), 1937-38; GGIE, 1939; Sanity in Art (LA), 1940.

In: Orange Co. (CA) Museum; Gardena (CA) High School; Univ. of Nevada (Las Vegas).

Source:
Edan Hughes, "Artists in California, 1786-1940"
Calif. Design 1910; American Art Annual 1919; Southern California Artists (Nancy Moure); Who's Who in American Art 1940; Who's Who on the Pacific Coast 1949; Artists of the American West (Samuels); Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers (Fielding, Mantle); Artists of the American West (Doris Dawdy); West as Art; So. Calif. Artists 1890-1940; NY Times, 9-7-1974 (obituary)