Happenings on the Monterey Peninsula
Since moving to the Monterey Peninsula several years ago, one of my favorite ways to get involved in the community and meet new people is as a docent at the Monterey Museum of Art. Getting to know the museum, the staff, and other volunteers has been such a rich blessing to me. The museums collection portrays the rich historic art tradition of the area, as well as features contemporary local artists in a new exhibition space named Flux.
Monterey Museum of Art at La Mirada Courtyard
The focus of the museum for 2018 is the Year of the Woman. There were so many talented women who were part of the artists enclave, who built the community and contributed to it’s rich bohemian past. E.Charlton Fortune was one of the women who left her mark on the Monterey Peninsula through her artworks’ deep moody colors and broad brushstrokes. She was a familiar sight in her day, riding her bicycle, paint supplies in tow, to her favorite painting sites.
E.Charles Fortune Studio Sign
There have been numerous fun events to celebrate the exhibition of E. Charlton Fortune, one being a bicycle tour of her favorite painting spots along the Peninsula. An upcoming event will focus on her liturgical art, to be held at the La Mirada Educational Center.
Monterey Museum of Art at La Mirada Mural
MMOA has two locations. Ongoing exhibits at the Old Town Monterey location on Pacific Street, and the historic La Mirada site, a former Adobe residence converted into a museum and educational center. I absolutely love it when events are held at La Mirada. It is an intriguing place, with a fascinating history and scandalous tales of celebrity intrigue prior to the landmark building becoming a museum. Read Wild Bird: The True Jazz Age Tale of Ruth Wightman Morris by John Greenwald to learn all the juicy details. You won’t be disappointed! The grounds and views alone are worth the visit, but my favorite part is the murals by Diego Rivera’s assistants…which playful depict the tale of the previous owners and their celebrity friends.
Sacred Fortune: The Importance of E. Charlton Fortune’s Liturgical Art
July 24, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
MMA La Mirada Education Center
Sacred Fortune: The Importance of E. Charlton Fortune’s Liturgical Art
Speaker: Jewel Gentry, Carmel Mission Museum Manager
E. Charlton Fortune, at the height of her success as an impressionist painter, transitioned to designing liturgical art for the Catholic Church. In 1955, Pope Pius XII awarded her with the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, which is the highest distinction for artists given by the Vatican.
Learn about liturgical art, its function, and the important role Fortune played in transforming the aesthetic of the sacred.
For more information and to RSVP for the event http://www.montereyart.org/event/sacred-fortune-the-importance-of-e-charlton-fortunes-liturgical-art/.