Spring 2026

on local artists, including Jo Mora. One of many Mora-related displays includes seven original murals of anthropomorphic animals Mora created for the Fable Restaurant in San Francisco’s Hotel Drake-Wiltshire in 1936. Next, follow Holman Highway (Highway 68) to Carmel. Carmel priest Ramon Mestres, an admirer of Mora’s work, commissioned Mora to create the Father Serra memorial, a bronze and travertine cenotaph for the Memorial Chapel at the Carmel Mission , along with a cross and altar, that were dedicated on October 12, 1924. Mora considered the cenotaph to be his supreme artistic accomplishment. Upon moving to Carmel, Mora immersed himself in a variety of aspects of community life. He was an avid member of the Abalone Softball League in the 1920s, and he starred in the lead- ing role of “The Bad Man,” a play at the Forest Theatre. Mora was also a founding board mem- ber of the Carmel Art Association in 1927. Concurrent with his work at the Carmel Mission, Mora carved a wooden Junipero Serra statue and built a shelter and benches in the Spanish Revival style at the intersection of Camino Del Monte, Dolores and Alta streets in Carmel—a commission for S.F.B. Morse, for what was to be the gateway to Morse’s residen- (Above) The former Hotel Drake-Wiltshire owners took full advantage of Mora’s creativity, using his art on murals in their restaurant and also on postcards and menus. (Below) Mora painting in the comfort of his home workshop. 120 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 6 Photo: Lewis Josselyn, courtesy of the Jo Mora Collection, Monterey History and Art Association