ONLINE. ARTHUR BEAUMONT: Art of the Sea A Zoom Presentation by Geoffrey Beaumont

When: Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 7:00pm
Cost: Free, but registration is required. Donations welcome.
Registration required: https://sbmm.org/santa-barbara-events/
Sponsored by: Marie Morrisroe

The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum is delighted to announce that Geoffrey Campbell Beaumont will offer a fascinating presentation about his father Arthur Beaumont’s life and work as the US Navy’s official “Artist of the Fleet.” Beaumont will share personal stories of the various paintings and provide viewers with his unique insight into this incomparable exhibit, the art and the artist.

Arthur Beaumont: Art of the Sea–an exhibit of 53 paintings chronicling the accomplishments of the US Navy, from the USS Constitution to atomic bomb tests and expeditions to the North and South Poles—will be at the Museum until the end of May, the last show on the West Coast before it leaves for the East Coast. Beaumont used Impressionist techniques in painting the stunning images in this exhibit and in capturing the majesty of the oceans and the vessels that sail them. In addition to the paintings, the show will be accompanied by a book of his life and art, also entitled Arthur Beaumont: Art of the Sea, written by Beaumont’s son Geoffrey and published by the Irvine Museum in Irvine, California.

Arthur Beaumont (1890-1978) was born in Norfolk County, England and came to the US in 1908 to study art at Berkeley, before moving to Los Angeles and opening his first commercial art studio in 1917. After studying further with other artists in the US and Europe and teaching art and watercolor painting, Beaumont received a commission as a lieutenant in the US Navy and became the “Artist of the Fleet” by 1933, beginning his lifelong work of depicting naval vessels in various settings and states of preparedness through WWII, nuclear bomb testing, the Korean War, in Vietnam, and naval missions to China, Japan, Alaska and Antarctica as well as Revolutionary War-era sailing vessels and portraits of prominent naval officers.

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Since 2000, the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum has featured many artifacts and stories to share the history of the Santa Barbara Channel with more than 40,000 visitors annually and provides year-round experiential maritime history and marine science education for local youth. Featuring the impressive First-Order Fresnel Lighthouse Lens from Point Conception, SBMM’s exhibits include History of Oil in Santa Barbara Channel, the Honda Disaster, and Wives and Daughters: Keepers of the Light.

SBMM is located in the historic Santa Barbara Harbor at 113 Harbor Way, Suite 190, Santa Barbara, CA 93109. Visit sbmm.org or call (805) 962-8404 for details.