Image Credits (from left): Anna T. Kelley "The Old Mill Wall", Esther Engelmen "Long Shadows at The Old Mill", W. Jason Situ "Pomegranate Patio Sunshine"

The California Art Club will unveil the exhibition The Old Mill: Celebrating 200 Years on May 17, to mark the bicentennial of the historic site that is the oldest commercial building in Southern California and home to the California Art Club Gallery since 1999.

A reception with the exhibiting artists will be held on Thursday, May 19, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

“‘El Molino Viejo’ is an architectural landmark with a fascinating link to the past and a notable California cultural center,” says Madeleine Aguilar, exhibitions coordinator for the California Art Club. “The California Art Club is pleased to have an exhibition to honor this local treasure and longtime exhibition partner.”

In preparation for this display, which will be on view through September 11, the organization encouraged its Artist Members, which includes many of the state’s foremost representational artists, to visit The Old Mill to specifically create new artwork of the two-story building and its grounds, including the Pomegranate Patio and the lush gardens of native plants. The Club also organized “paint-outs” – special events in which groups of artists converged on the property, with easels, paints and brushes in hand, to paint together.

The exhibition will showcase approximately 40 paintings of The Old Mill and its many facets, with works by many artists that call the San Gabriel Valley home, including Peter Adams, Anna T. Kelly, Tim Solliday and W. Jason Situ. The exhibition will also display the works of Nanette Biers, Christopher Cook, Donald Crocker, Linda DuPas, Esther Engelman, Terri Ford, Debra Holladay, Chuck Kovacic, Kevin Lee, Frank Lennartz, Elaine Mathews, Jon Messer, R. Mike Nichols, Michael Obermeyer, Rita Pacheco, Rodolfo Rivademar, Junn Roca, Liliana Simanton, Milly Tsai and Karen Winters.

All of the paintings are available for acquisition. The California Art Club Gallery is located in the room that was originally the granary, where milled grain was stored when The Old Mill served as the grist mill for Mission San Gabriel.

Gallery hours are 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, except holidays. There is no admission charge. After the opening of the exhibition at the Old Mill, which is located at 1120 Old Mill Road in San Marino, the artwork may be viewed online at californiaartclub.org.

About the California Art Club

The California Art Club (californiaartclub.org), established in 1909 by early California Impressionists or plein air painters, is recognized as one of the oldest, largest and most active leading professional art organizations in the world. The mission of the Club is to promote traditional fine arts in the fields of painting, drawing and sculpture; produce and promote art exhibitions that foster greater understanding of traditional art heritage and California history; and furnish educational opportunities in the fine arts. Members include nationally renowned artists, art students, art scholars and patrons, and leading collectors and members of the business community in order to interject different perspectives into the ongoing dialogue about traditional fine arts.

About the California Art Club Gallery at The Old Mill

Since 1999, the California Art Club and The Old Mill Foundation (old-mill.org) have partnered to provide a venue at which contemporary-traditional fine art paintings created by the Club’s Artist Members could be showcased year-round. With a series of themed exhibitions that are changed quarterly, the Gallery offers an ever-changing look at the life and land of California through the eyes of many of the state’s foremost representational artists. The Old Mill, completed in 1816 as a grist mill for Mission San Gabriel, is the oldest commercial building in Southern California. The room that is now the gallery was originally the Granery, where milled grain was stored. The California Art Club Gallery a The Old Mill is located at 1120 Old Mill Road in San Marino, Calif., and the telephone number is (626) 449-5458. Gallery hours are 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, except holidays.