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Zion
Zion
Zion

Zion

Artist (1886 - 1975)
Datec. 1936
MediumLithograph
Dimensions12 x 17 in. (30.5 x 43.2 cm)
ClassificationsPrintmaking
Credit LineGift of Michael J. Rivard and Carol Susan Rivard
Object number2019.063
DescriptionConrad Buff II was born in 1886 in Switzerland. At the age of 14, Buff was at first apprenticed to a baker, but he later went to Munich and studied art. In 1905, he emigrated to New York. He worked his way west by taking various odd jobs as a sheepherder, pastry chef, railroad laborer and house painter. By 1906, he had made his way to San Francisco, but finding the city in ruins as a result of the earthquake and fire, he headed for Southern California, eventually settling in Laguna Hills with his wife, Mary. He and Mary became a successful children’s-book team, with Mary writing the books and Conrad illustrating them – but throughout his life, Conrad always created fine-art paintings as well.

Buff's landscapes emphasize geometric forms with a strong sense of architecture. As his work matured, it became increasingly flatter and more abstract.
On View
Not on view
Sleeping Hills
Conrad Buff
c. 1939
Alps in Switzerland
Conrad Buff
1940
Spanish Hills
Phil Dike
1930
Haystack Near Gorman
Warren Alfred Newcombe
c.1935
Clowning Around
Ben Messick
c.1930
Chez Nous
Fletcher Martin
c. 1939
After Curfew
Ben Messick
c. 1930
Heavy Load
Ben Messick
c. 1930