Frank J. Brown (1921-2000) American, Oil on Canvas. 

Overall: 14 5/8 X 18 5/8 in. 

Sight: 11 1/2 X 15 1/2 in. 

Depth: 1 3/4 in. 

#3907 . 

Frank Julian Brown was born in Portland, Oregon on November 2nd, 1921.  Brown began his career as an artist in a Portland print shop after graduating from high school. Following service in the Navy during World War II, he moved to San Francisco to study at the California School of Fine Arts, where he met his life partner William Campbell. The two painted together, collaborating on dozens of paintings, until 1950, gaining inspiration from trips to Mexico, although Campbell eventually gave up pursuing art and passed away in 1985. Brown retreated from the San Francisco art scene in the mid 1950s after poor critical reception, as they had both steered clear of the Abstract Expressionism that swept through San Francisco in the 1940s, instead creating vibrant Impressionist landscapes and still lifes. Very private and a virtual recluse by the 1990s, Brown died alone in his home on April 16th, 2000. One of his few friends, neighbor Dexter Garnier, discovered his body along with nearly 800 paintings that had never seen the light of day stored throughout his house. Over half were signed by Brown, and among them were 16 by Campbell done between 1980 and his death, with a farewell letter thanking Brown for “reigniting his passion.” Garnier, though not an expert on art, was overwhelmed by the massive number of paintings and touched by the dedication of the artists to their craft, and each other. He created the Brown & Campbell Collection Catalog to help disperse their art to various galleries, museums, and private collections.