Guy Rose
Impressionist
Impressionist
Born in San Gabriel, California, Guy Rose (1867–1925) became the state’s foremost Impressionist. He spent much of his career in Giverny, France, where he was exposed to Impressionism through proximity to Claude Monet’s famous studio and through his friendships with other American artists working there. When he returned to California in 1914, he made shoreline views his favored subject, depicting the southern and central coast’s natural beauty in a style permeated with atmosphere and light.
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Later that decade, lead poisoning required him to give up oil painting, after which he turned to illustration with Ethel. Working from their cottage in Giverny, the couple became “the best living fashion artists” in the world. They returned to the United States in 1912 and two years later settled in Alhambra in Southern California. From there and then from Pasadena, Rose traveled to picturesque locales and coastal communities like Laguna Beach, La Jolla, and, ultimately, Carmel-by-the-Sea to paint plein air scenes that captured California’s crystalline light, atmosphere, trees, and foliage.