Winter 2016

2016 Antiques & Fine Art 133 Donna Schuster (1883–1953), On the Beach, Malibu, 1917. Oil on canvas, 29 x 29 inches. The Irvine Museum. Donna Schuster settled in Los Angeles after studying with Frank W. Benson and William Merritt Chase. She arrived in 1913, just as Los Angeles was celebrating the opening of the Los Angeles Aqueduct that provided the city and surrounding area with a steady supply of fresh water. By 1915, Schuster was a member of the California Art Club and was exhibiting in group exhibitions. Her works often featured figurative subject matter. When Schuster painted On the Beach, Malibu , she had apparently acquired access to the stretch of coastline between Santa Monica and Point Mugu known as Malibu. Until the mid-1920s that particular section of California coastline was privately owned by the Rindge Family and they did not welcome many guests. If access was granted, most visitors rode into the area on horses because of the primitive paths. On The Beach, Malibu shows us what that area was like prior to Pacific Coast Highway days. It also provides a glimpse into how a talented artist took what she learned from Frank W. Benson and applied it to the Southern California beach culture that was beginning to develop when this work was painted.