Zion

Artist Conrad Buff (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.

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