Spanning approximately two centuries--from the mid-18th to the mid-20th century--the core of this collection area consists of the original 60 paintings of the Preston Morton Collection given in 1960, now expanded through gifts and purchases to include some 400 paintings and sculptures. Examples of portraiture and still life are strong in each historical period, while the development of American landscape painting is represented with an outstanding selection by key artists of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Works of importance by Albert Bierstadt, George Inness, John Singer Sargent, Frederic Remington, William Merritt Chase, Robert Henri, Marsden Hartley, and Milton Avery place this survey collection among the best in California.

Selected works from our American Art collection:

click thumbnails to view larger images
click to enlarge	Gifford Beal USA, 1879-1956 Sideshow, 1910 Oil on canvas 28 1/8 x 36 1/8" Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection 1959.66	click to enlarge	George Wesley Bellows American, 1882-1925 Steaming Streets, 1908 Oil on canvas 38 3/8 x 30 1/4" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.50
click to enlarge	Albert Bierstadt German (active America), 1830-1902 Mirror Lake, Yosemite Valley, 1864 Oil on canvas 21 3/4 x 30 1/8" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection 1960.51	click to enlarge	Thomas Birch English, 1779-1851 (active USA) Landscape with Indians, 1835 Oil on canvas 25 x 36" Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Dalzell Hatfield 1958.42
click to enlarge	Ralph Albert Blakelock USA, 1847-1919 Lake by Moonlight, n.d. Oil on canvas 18 x 22" Bequest of Margaret Mallory 1998.50.14	click to enlarge	Charles F. Blauvelt USA, 1824-1900 Homeward Bound from New York, n.d. Oil on canvas 12 3/8 x 9 3/8" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.1
click to enlarge	John George Brown English, 1831-1913 (active USA) Boy Fishing, 1877 Oil on canvas 21 x 17" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.2	click to enlarge	John George Brown English, 1831-1913 (active USA) Pull for the Shore, n.d. Oil on canvas 21 x 17" Gifts from the Estate of Mrs. Stanley McCormick, Norman Hirschl and the American Federation of Arts to the Preston Morton Collection by exchange 1971.18
click to enlarge	Samuel S. Carr USA, 1837-1908 The Open Window (Contemplation), 1870s-1880s Oil on canvas 30 x 18" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.3	click to enlarge	William Merritt Chase USA, 1849-1916 The Lady in Pink (Portrait of the artist's wife), 1886 Oil on canvas 68 1/2 x 38 3/4" 1998.50.24
click to enlarge	William Merritt Chase USA, 1849-1916 Lydia Field Emmett, 1900 Oil on canvas 24 x 20" Bequest of Margaret Mallory 1998.50.23	click to enlarge	Frederic Edwin Church USA, 1826-1900 Moonrise in Greece, 1889 Oil on canvas 14 1/8 x 20 1/4" Gift of Mrs. Lockwood de Forest 1966.1
	Thomas Cole USA, 1801-1848 The Meeting of the Waters, ca. 1847 Oil on canvas 51 x 75 3/4" Gift of Suzette Morton Davidson to the Preston Morton Collection 1979.19	click to enlarge	Jasper Francis Cropsey USA, 1823-1900 Janetta Falls, Passaic County, New Jersey, 1846 Oil on canvas 19 x 22" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection 1960.55
	Arthur B. Davies USA, 1862-1928 Redwoods, n.d. (ca. 1905-1913) Oil on paper mounted on board 18 x 40" Museum purchase 1967.6		Stuart Davis USA, 1894-1964 Yellow Hills, 1919 Oil on canvas 24 x 30" Gift of Heyward Cutting 1980.73
	Lockwood De Forest USA, 1850-1932 California Coastal Range, 1923 Oil on canvas 24 x 34 1/8 x 3/4" Gift of the Estate of Alice de Forest Sedgwick 1988.49.3	click to enlarge	Thomas W. Eakins American, 1844-1916 Portrait of Master Douty, 1906 Oil on canvas 20 x 16 1/8" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.56
click to enlarge	Louis M. Eilshemius USA, 1864-1941 Plaza Theatre, 1915 Oil on composition board 30 1/2 x 40 1/2" Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ira Gershwin 1956.5.2		Alvan Fisher USA, 1792-1863 Watching the Boats, 1819 Oil on canvas 18 x 22" Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Ronald M. Lawrence 1984.50.3
click to enlarge	Walter Gay USA, 1856-1937 Interior of His Brother's House in Boston, n.d. (ca. 1902) Oil on canvas 20 x 24 7/8" Anonymous Gift for the Preston Morton Collection 1961.12	click to enlarge	Sanford Gifford USA, 1823-1877 Isola Bella, Lago Maggiore, n.d. Oil on canvas 20 x 35 7/8" Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Ronald M. Lawrence 1981.52
	William James Glackens USA, 1870-1938 East River from Brooklyn, 1902 Oil on canvas 25 1/8 x 30" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection 1960.57		Seymour Guy English, 1824-1910 (active USA) The Love Letter, 1860s-1870s Oil on canvas 22 3/8 x 15 1/4" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.6
click to enlarge	William Michael Harnett Irish, 1848-1892 (active USA) The Secretary's Table, 1870 Oil on canvas 14 x 20" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton for the Preston Morton Collection 1960.60	click to enlarge	William S. Haseltine USA, 1835-1900 Indian Rock, Narragansett Sound, Rhode Island, 1863 or 1868 Oil on canvas 22 3/8 x 38 1/4" Gift of Mary and Will Richeson, Jr. 1980.75.1
click to enlarge	Childe Hassam USA, 1859-1935 The Manhattan Club, n.d. (ca. 1891) Oil on canvas 18 1/4 x 22 1/8" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.62		Martin Johnson Heade USA, 1819-1904 Apple Blossom Branch on a Table, 1874 Oil on canvas 10 x 15" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.7
	Robert Henri USA, 1865-1929 Derricks on the North River, 1902 Oil on canvas 26 x 32" Museum purchase for the Preston Morton Collection, with funds provided by the Chalifoux Fund 1977.45		Thomas Hill English, 1829-1908 (active USA) View of Yosemite Valley, 1893 Oil on canvas 19 3/4 x 29 3/4" Gift of Donald and Jobeth Van Gelderen in honor of Richard West 1991.96
click to enlarge	Clarence Hinkle American, 1880-1960 Coast Line, Laguna, ca. 1924 Oil on canvas 30 x 36" Gift of Mabel Bain Hinkle 1961.18		Winslow Homer USA, 1836-1910 Woman in Autumn Woods, n.d. (ca. 1877) Oil on canvas 35 1/8 x 24" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.63
click to enlarge	George Inness American, 1825-1894 Morning, Catskill Valley, 1894 Oil on canvas 35 3/8 x 53 3/4" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.66	click to enlarge	Frank Tenney Johnson USA, 1874-1939 Cowboy with Lasso on Horse, n.d. (ca. 1920s) Oil on canvas 30 x 24" 1976.41
click to enlarge	John Frederick Kensett USA, 1816-1872 View of the Beach At Beverly, Massachusetts, 1860 Oil on canvas 14 1/4 x 24 1/4" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.68	click to enlarge	Ernest Lawson USA, 1873-1939 Royal Gorge, Colorado, n.d. Oil on canvas 25 x 30" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.70
click to enlarge	Edward C. Leavitt USA, 1842-1904 Grapefruit, n.d. Oil on canvas 16 x 22" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.9		George Luks USA, 1867-1933 The Haunted House, n.d. (ca. 1925-1930) Oil on canvas 13 1/4 x 19" Gift of the Women's Board 1960.47
	Paul Manship USA, 1885-1966 Flight of Night, 1916 Bronze 17 3/8 x 12 7/8 x 6 3/4" (overall object) Gift of Mrs. George M. Newell 1946.5.1		Larkin Goldsmith Mead USA, 1835-1910 Venezia, ca. 1865 Marble 25 1/2 x 17 x 9 1/2" (with base) Gift of Joanna and Travers Newton 1991.93.1
	Thomas Moran USA, 1837-1926 Mountain Landscape, 1864 Oil on canvas 20 1/4 x 28 1/4" Gift of Mrs. Ina T. Campbell 1942.21.1	click to enlarge	Thomas Moran USA, 1837-1926 Veracruz, 1885 Oil on canvas 28 x 21 3/4" Gift of Mrs. Lockwood de Forest 1984.53.5
click to enlarge	Elie Nadelman Polish, 1882-1946 (active USA) Female Head, 1909-10 White marble 13 1/4 x 12 1/2 x 8"; marble base: 4 3/4 x 9 1/8"(diam.); total: 18 x 12 1/2 x 8" Museum Purchase, with funds provided by the Austin Fund in honor of Wright S. Ludington, the Carol L. Valentine Art Acquisition Fund, the Mary and Leigh Block Fund, and the General Art Acquisitions Fund 1999.47		Hugh Newell Irish, 1830-1915 (active USA) Children with a Goldfish Bowl, 1873 Oil on canvas 12 x 14" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.10
click to enlarge	John Frederick Peto American, 1854-1907 My Studio Door, 1895 Oil on canvas 49 3/8 x 29 1/2" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.76		John Frederick Peto USA, 1854-1907 Still-Life with Cake, n.d. Oil on board 6 1/4 x 9 1/8 x 1/8" 1994.34.13
	John Frederick Peto USA, 1854-1907 Still-Life with Pipe, n.d. Oil on board 6 1/4 x 9 3/8" 1994.34.11	click to enlarge	Abram Poole American, 1882-1961 Portrait of Mercedes de Acosta, 1923 Oil on canvas 79 x 39 1/2" Gift of Mercedes de Acosta in honor of Ala Story 1960.26
click to enlarge	Edward Henry Potthast USA, 1857-1927 Santa Barbara Mission, ca. 1910 Oil on canvas, mounted on cardboard 8 x 10" Gift of Mr. David Becker 1980.2	click to enlarge	Maurice Prendergast USA, 1859-1924 Summer in the Park, n.d. (ca. 1905-1907) Oil on canvas 15 1/2 x 20 1/4" Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Sterling Morton 1959.52
click to enlarge	Frederic Remington American, 1861-1909 Fight Over a Waterhole, 1897 Oil on canvas 27 x 40" Gift of Barbara D. Dupee 1996.24	no image	William Henry Rinehart USA, 1825-1874 Untitled (portrait bust of Charles Cheney as a child), 1872 Marble 16 3/4 x 11 3/4 x 7 1/2" Gift of Joanna and Travers Newton in honor of Phillip M. Johnston 2007.51
click to enlarge	Severin Roesen German, ca. 1815-1872 (active USA) Still Life, 1848 Oil on canvas 25 x 35" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.79		Randolph Rogers USA, 1825-1892 Ruth Gleaning, 1861 Marble 34 3/4 x 16" (includes base) Museum purchase with funds provided by Mrs. Sterling Morton for gallery niche 1969.9
	Charles Marion Russell USA, 1865-1926 Where the Best of Riders Quit, n.d. (ca. 1920) Bronze 14 3/4 x 8 x 8 3/8" (object w/o base) Gift of Malcolm P. Aldrich in memory of Edward S. Harkness 1966.8		Augustus Saint-Gaudens USA, 1848-1907 Head of Victory, n.d. Gilded bronze 8 1/4 x 7 1/2 x 6" Museum Purchase, with funds provided by the Suzette and Eugene Davidson Fund 1992.70
click to enlarge	John Singer Sargent USA, 1856-1925 Perseus at Night (The Statue of Perseus in Florence), n.d. (ca. 1907) Oil on canvas 50 3/4 x 36 3/8" SBMA, Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.80	click to enlarge	Joseph Henry Sharp USA, 1859-1953 Elk Foot, Pueblo of Taos, New Mexico, n.d. (ca. 1903-1912) Oil on canvas 15 1/8 x 20" Gift of William and Marion Dentzel 1980.101
	Everett Shinn USA, 1873-1953 Sixth Avenue Shoppers, 1903 Pastel and watercolor on board 21 x 26 1/2" 1960.81		Everett Shinn USA, 1873-1953 The Seine, Right Bank, ca. 1905 Oil on canvas Bequest of Margaret Mallory 1998.50.60
	Francis Augustus Silva USA, 1836-1886 Sunset Off City Island, ca. 1880 Oil on canvas 14 x 24 1/4" Museum purchase, The Dicken Fund in memory of Emily Rodgers Davis 1988.52	click to enlarge	John Sloan USA, 1871-1951 City from the Palisades, 1908 Oil on canvas 26 1/8 x 32 1/8" Gift of Mrs. Sterling Morton to the Preston Morton Collection 1960.82
click to enlarge	George Henry Story USA, 1835-1923 Wonders of the Barn, ca. 1865 Oil on panel 24 x 20" Gift of Charles C. and Elma Ralphs Shoemaker 1994.34.16