Fall - 2022

and influence can be seen all over Carmel. In the early years, they saw the looming threat of commercialization and fought to keep Carmel a small, quaint village immersed in nature. These same artists were also incredibly active members of the community. In 1915, E. Charlton Fortune and Mary DeNeale Morgan donated paintings to a sale benefiting the restoration of the Carmel Mission and Fortune sat on the restora- tion committee. In 1918 William Posey Silva petitioned to limit the development and paving of Ocean Avenue and worked with other artists to prevent the building of a new city hall and a resort planned for development on the beach at the end of Ocean Avenue.As soon as the association was formed, members banded togeth- er for causes to preserve Carmel and in October of 1927, members approved a petition to restrict building height in the town. CAA artist and blacksmith John Catlin (who built the Forge in the Forest) was mayor of Carmel from 1932-1934 during prohibition. He worked to repeal a clause imposed by the Carmel Development Company that would revert a property’s title to the company if alcohol was consumed on the premises– even in a private home. Fellow blacksmith and CAA artist Francis E. Whittaker sat on the city council for 13 years, working hard to preserve Point Lobos and Big Sur. The artists protested parking meters and billboards, they raised funds to build the new high school, they planted trees, preserved dunes and worked to save Carmel Beach. Members Armin Hansen and Paul Whitman founded the Carmel Art Institute in 1937, an institution that provided art education in Carmel for many decades. Many artist members were involved in the Forest Theater Guild, others were involved in the inception of the Bach Festival and the creation of the Sunset Center.The stories of preservation, community involvement and activism among the early artist mem- bers are endless and have continued to the present day. One cause that has carried on since the days of Salvador Dalí’s membership in the 1940s, is that of promoting student art. In Dalí’s time, he juried the CAA high school art competition, which was open to students throughout the state. Now known as “For the Love of Art,” the annual event is open to high school juniors and seniors from Monterey County. The juried show gives an average of 70 students the opportunity to take part in a large group show, having their work exhibited and sold in an established gallery. It is remarkable that a town with so much important history and art has no art museum to share and highlight the many contribu- tions these early artists made, not only to California but to the nation as a whole.Through the years, the CAA has helped to fill that void with its thoughtful publications and incredibly knowledgeable staff, who are happy to educate visitors about the town’s rich art history.Taking it a step further, the CAA has recently formed a History and Legacy Committee with the goal of celebrating the art and lives of late members and preserving the history and legacy of the association for future generations. (Above) Arthur Hill Gilbert, “Monterey Oaks,” oil on linen, 25 x 30 in. (Below) Artists prepare a show in the 1960s. Art is at the very root of the devel- opment of Carmel, and throughout the city’s history the CAA and its members have been at center stage. C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 2 107 Photos: Courtesy of the Carmel Art Association