Alfred Richard Mitchell
American, 1888 - 1972
Alfred Mitchell was born in York, Pennsylvania on June 18, 1888. Mitchell spent his childhood in New Jersey. As a teenager he prospected for gold and drove a stagecoach in Nevada. He settled in San Diego about 1909 and studied art at the San Diego Academy of Art under Maurice Braun. In 1916 he entered the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts for further training. After his academic training and a tour of Europe on a scholarship, in 1920, he returned to San Diego where he remained for the rest of his life. His paintings done during his student days, pre 1920, were often signed "Fred Mitchell". Later in his career, he painted landscapes and sunsets using a bolder palette. Mitchell was co-founder of the La Jolla Art Association, a member of the Laguna Beach Art Association, the Chula Vista Art Guild, the San Diego Art Guild (president, 1922-1923), the Contemporary Artists of San Diego and the California Club. His works are held at The Reading Museum in Pennsylvania, The San Diego Museum of Art, the San Diego Public Library, and private and corporation across the nation. One of San Diego's most renowned painters and teachers, he died there on November 9, 1972.
Biography courtesy of DeRu's Fine Arts, www.antiquesandfineart.com/derus
Biography courtesy of DeRu's Fine Arts, www.antiquesandfineart.com/derus
