Millard Owen Sheets (June 24, 1907 – March 31, 1989) was an American artist, teacher, and architectural designer. He was one of the earliest of the California Scene Painting artists and helped define the art movement. Many of his large-scale building-mounted

mosaics A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

from the mid-20th century are still extant in Southern California. His paintings are in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum in New York, the Chicago Art Institute, the National Gallery in Washington D.C.; and the Los Angeles County Museum.

Early life and education

Millard Sheets was born June 24, 1907, and grew up in the

Pomona Valley The Pomona Valley is located in the Greater Los Angeles Area between the San Gabriel Valley and San Bernardino Valley in Southern California. The valley is approximately east of downtown Los Angeles. History The earliest inhabitants of Pomo ...

, east of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He is the son of John Sheets. He attended the

Chouinard Art Institute The Chouinard Art Institute was a professional art school founded in 1921 by Nelbert Chouinard, Nelbert Murphy Chouinard (1879–1969) in the Westlake, Los Angeles, Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. In 1961, Walt Disney, Walt and ...

and studied with painters

Frank Tolles Chamberlin Frank Tolles Chamberlin (March 10, 1873 – July 24, 1961) was an American painter, muralist, sculptor, and art teacher. He studied at the Art Students League with George DeForest Brush and George Bridgman. He taught for four years at the Beaux-A ...

and Clarence Hinkle. While he was still a teenager, his watercolors were accepted for exhibition in the annual California Water Color Society show. By the age of 19, he was elected into membership of the California Water Color Society. The following year he was hired to teach watercolor painting before his graduation from Chouinard.

Career

In May 1927, Sheets exhibited twelve of his landscapes and seascapes oil paintings at the Ebell Club in Pomona. In 1929 he won second prize in the Texas Wildflowers Competitive Exhibitions, and the generous award allowed Sheets to travel to Europe for a year to further his art education. By the early 1930s he began to achieve national recognition as a prominent American artist. He was exhibiting in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, and many other cities throughout the United States. In Los Angeles he was recognized as the leading figure and driving force behind the California Style watercolor movement. Between 1935 and 1941, his recognition, awards, and output increased, winning him repeated mention in '' Art Digest'' and a color reproduction of his work in the book ''Eyes on America''. In 1935 at age 28, he was the subject of a monograph published in Los Angeles. In 1943, he painted four murals at the Main Interior Building in Washington, D.C. in the subject of “The Negro’s Contribution in the Social and Cultural Development of America.” His art sales enabled him to travel again to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, where he painted on location. Although his watercolor techniques during this period ranged from very tight to very loose, a consistent, he nevertheless exhibited a personal style. During World War II, he was an artist-correspondent for ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' and the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

. Many of his works from this period document the scenes of famine, war, and death that he witnessed. His wartime experience also informed his post-war art for a number of years, where while painting in California and Mexico in the 1940s his work followed dark hues and depressing subjects. After the 1950s his style shifted toward brighter colors and subjects from his worldwide travels. Watercolor and oil painting were only part of Sheets's art career. Through his teaching at

Otis Art Institute Otis College of Art and Design is a Private university, private Art school, art and design school in Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1918, it was the city's first independent professional school of art. The main campus is l ...

Scripps College Scripps College is a private liberal arts women's college in Claremont, California. It was founded as a member of the Claremont Colleges in 1926, a year after the consortium's formation. Journalist and philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps pr ...

and other institutions, hundreds of artists learned how to paint, and were then guided into art careers. He directed the art exhibition at the Los Angeles County Fair for many years and brought world-class work to Southern California. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, he joined forces with Edward Bruce to hire artists for the Public Works of Art Project, the first

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

art project. In 1946, he served as a president of the California Water Color Society. In later years, he worked as an architect, illustrator, muralist, printmaker, and art exhibition juror. Outside of California, he took on commissions for the

Detroit Public Library The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in the U.S. state of Michigan by volumes held (after the University of Michigan Library) and the List of largest libraries in the United States, 12th-largest public library system i ...

, the

Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...

, the dome of the National Shrine, the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

library, the

Hilton Hotel Hilton Hotels & Resorts (formerly known as Hilton Hotels) is a global brand of full-service hotels and resorts and the flagship brand of American multinational hospitality company Hilton Worldwide. The original company was founded by Conrad Hi ...

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, and the Mercantile National Bank in Dallas. In 1953, Sheets was appointed director of Otis Art Institute (later named

Otis College of Art and Design Otis College of Art and Design is a private art and design school in Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1918, it was the city's first independent professional school of art. The main campus is located in the former IBM Aero ...

). Under his leadership, the school's academic program was restructured to offer BFA and MFA degrees, and a ceramics department was created, headed by Peter Voulkos. During that time, a ceramics building, gallery, library, and studio wing were completed. By the time Sheets left Otis in 1962, the form and direction of the college had changed dramatically.

Millard Sheets Art Center

The Millard Sheets Art Center first began as the Fine Arts Program of the Los Angeles County Fair in 1922. The 20,000+ square-foot art center was built in 1937 by the Works Progress Administration to house the program, the first major gallery dedicated solely to art in Los Angeles County. Each year, the gallery provided visitors to the Los Angeles County Fair with access to art work found throughout the world. In 1994 the building was dedicated to Millard Sheets, and in 2013 was identified by

Fairplex The Fairplex has been the home of the L.A. County Fair since 1922. Known prior to 1984 as the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, it is located in the city of Pomona, California. The L.A. County Fair is held during the month of May since 2022, but th ...

as the home for year-round art education and exhibitions and is currently a part of The Learning Centers at Fairplex.

Work

Mosaic murals at Home Savings Bank branches

In the late 1950s, Sheets was commissioned by Howard F. Ahmanson to design Home Savings Bank branches throughout Southern California that would serve as community landmarks by expressing "community values" or presenting "a celebratory version of the community history." To accomplish this goal, Sheets designed his branch buildings with exterior façades containing large mosaic works depicting local heritage. The Ahmanson commissions multiplied to include more than 80 branch buildings after the initial 1955 commission. Sheets resigned his teaching position at

and established the Sheets Studio in Claremont, California, employing a series of artists. Sheets produced these untitled mosaics as commercial commissions that are considered official

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

, and in the absence of a formal Sheets Studio title they are titled by their images or theme. Although they enjoy some protections under the California Arts Preservation Act, many have been destroyed.

List of Home Savings branches with Millard Sheets Studios artwork

According to researcher Adam Arenson, there were 168 Home Savings of America locations with some kind of Millard Sheets design contribution (including signage). However over time many of the mosaic murals have been removed from the facade of the buildings; some of which have been relocated to museums. Mosaic murals, bronze sculptures, and stained glass designed by the Sheets Studio were placed at scores of bank branches throughout California. The art's highly localized themes made them community landmarks for many neighborhoods and cities. * 9245 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, * 6311 Manchester Blvd., Buena Park, * 8010 Beach Blvd., Buena Park, * Sunset and Vine, Hollywood, * 660 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles * 4 West Redlands Blvd., Redlands * 27319 Hawthorne Blvd., Rolling Hills Estates * Corner of Arden Way & Expo Blvd, Sacramento * Mission Beach and Pacific Beach, San Diego; "The Harbor" and "Children's Zoo" plus 6 historical character mosaics, wall painting inside * 2750 Van Ness, Lombard Street and Van Ness, San Francisco, * 98 West Portal Avenue, San Francisco * 2600 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica * 12051 Ventura Blvd., Studio City * 6570 Magnolia Avenue, Riverside File:Grilling Season Is Here!.jpg, La Mesa, San Diego mosaic mural File:Millard Sheet Classical Greek Mosaic on Bank Building in Pomona.jpg, alt=, "Early Pomona Family" (1962) mosaic mural in Pomona File:Children’s Zoo mosaic mural by Millard Sheets Studio.jpg, "Children's Zoo" mosaic mural in San Diego File:“The Harbor” mosaic mural by Millard Sheets Studio.jpg, alt=, "The Harbor" mosaic mural in San Diego File:Photograph of tile mosaic mural by artist Millard Sheets , located in the west portal neighborhood of San Francisco, Ca.jpg, alt=in San Francisco, mosaic mural (1977) in West Portal, San Francisco File:Western Theme Mosaic on Chase Bank, Buena Park, California.jpg, alt=, "Scenes of the Old West" (1979) mosaic mural in Buena Park

Other notable work

* (1934)'' Southern California landscape,'' dining room wall painting for homeowners Fred H. and Bessie Ranke in the

Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills is a residential neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. It borders Studio City, Universal City and Burbank on the north, Griffith Park on the north and east, Los Feliz on the southeast, Hollyw ...

, moved in 2014 to the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens in

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

, California. * (1934) ''Tenement Flats'' A painting in the collection of the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

done during the Depression for the Public Works of Art Project and chosen to hang in the White House to show President Roosevelt's commitment to the arts and the American people. * (1939) ''Early California'' Three relief panels, stainless steel and enamel, installed at Mark Keppel High School,

Alhambra, California Alhambra (, , ; from "Alhambra") is a city located in the western San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, approximately east from the downtown Los Angeles civic center. It was incorporated on July 11, 190 ...

* (1948) ''The Negro's Contribution in the Social and Cultural Development of America'' – murals on first floor of the Main Interior Building at U.S. Department of the Interior Building, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C St. NW, Washington, DC * (1956) ''Panorama of the Pomona Valley'', 77 foot long painted mural, Pomona First Federal Bank, Pomona, California * (1961)

Scottish Rite The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry is a List of Masonic rites, rite within the broader context of Freemasonry. It is the most widely practiced List of Masonic rites, Rite in the world. In some parts of the world, and in the ...

Masonic Temple on

Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard ( wɪɫ.ʃɚ is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue (Santa Monica), Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica, California, Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue (Lo ...

in Los Angeles, designed and completed in 1961. For decades the building was considered "one of Los Angeles's most notorious real estate

white elephant A white elephant is a possession that its owner cannot dispose of without extreme difficulty, and whose cost, particularly that of maintenance, is out of proportion to its usefulness. In modern usage, it is a metaphor used to describe an object, ...

s." Though largely vacant since 1994, it was used as a location for the 2004 adventure film '' National Treasure'' starring

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Nicolas Cage, various accolades, including an Academy A ...

, concerning a fictional long-running Masonic conspiracy. It was refurbished in 2016 to house the Marciano Art Foundation museum. * (1961) Murals (one 24 ft., one 36 ft.) for the Palomare Room restaurant in Buffums department store,

Pomona Mall Pomona Mall was a pedestrian mall in downtown Pomona, California, recognized by the Los Angeles Conservancy as an outstanding example of Mid-century modern and modern architecture and design. It was completed in 1962 and designed by Millard Shee ...

in Sheets' native Pomona, portraying early Spanish settlement of the

. Sheets also designed the pedestrian mall itself. * (1963) ''Three Scenes From Shakespeare'' – A building-mounted mosaic of three vignettes from ''

Antony and Cleopatra ''Antony and Cleopatra'' is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The play was first performed around 1607, by the King's Men at either the Blackfriars Theatre or the Globe Theatre. Its first appearance in print was in the First Folio published ...

'', ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'', and ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'', Garrison Theater,

, Claremont, California. *(1964) '' Word of Life mural'' – A large mural on the side of the Hesburgh Library at the

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

. Commonly known among

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

fans as ''Touchdown Jesus'' because of its depiction of

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

with upraised arms, similar to the official's signal for a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. *(1966) ''Loyola Marymount Tapestry'', Foley Communication Arts Center,

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. LMU enrolls over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, making it the largest Catholic university on the west coast of the ...

, Los Angeles, California *(1968) ''Rainbow Murals'' at

Hilton Hawaiian Village The Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort is a resort hotel on Waikiki, Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii. The resort first opened in 1955, and since has grown to become the largest in the Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Hilton chain of hotel ...

*(1971) ''The Family of Man'', mural at James K. Hahn City Hall East, Los Angeles Mall,

Civic Center, Los Angeles The Civic Center district of Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, is the administrative core of the Los Angeles, California, City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, and a complex of city, county, U.S. state, state, and Federal gover ...

, California *(1974) ''Horse Haven'' *(1975) ''Drinkers of the Wind'' *(1976) ''Rosemary'' *(1977) ''Two Young Girs and Roosters,'' Mo'orea,

French Polynesia French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...

*(1977) 20 x 30 foot painted mural,

San Jose International Airport San José Mineta International Airport —officially Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport—is a city-owned public airport in San Jose, California. Located northwest of Downtown San Jose, the airport serves both the city and the Sa ...

, San Jose, California; originally in terminal C, moved in 2010 to terminal B. *(1978) ''Sunday Morning,'' Mo'orea *(1979) ''Fields and Windmills - Portugal,'' Watercolor, 21 x 29 inches, signed lower right *(1979) ''Afternoon Washing - Lake Chapalam, Mexico,'' Watercolor, 21 x 29 inches, signed lower left *(1980) ''Elegant Ancient Cypress,'' Watercolor, 22 x 30 inches, signed lower right *(1980) ''The Pines of Monterey - Deer with Sun and Shadow,'' Watercolor, 22 x 30 inches, signed lower right *(1983) ''Lake Chapala, Mexico,'' watercolor, 22 x 30 inches, signed lower right *(1987) ''Tribute to our Heritage'', mural, Lubbock Memorial Civic Center

Death

Sheets died on March 31, 1989, at his home in Anchor Bay in

Mendocino County, California Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza") is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United S ...

, after a long illness. A service was held at his home and at the First Unitarian Church of San Diego. Sheets had four children. His youngest son, Tony Sheets, has worked in restoring his father's murals, including the mural in San Jose, California. The Paul Bockhorst documentary film, “Design for Modern Living: Millard Sheets and the Claremont Art Community 1935–1975” (2015) was released posthumous.

Awards

The following are awards Sheets won, among others: * Watson F. Blair Purchase Prize, Chicago Art Institute (1938) * Philadelphia Watercolor Club Prize (1939) * Dana Watercolor Medal, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (1943) * Drawing Prize, Los Angeles County Museum of Art (1946) * Gold Brush Award, Artists Guild of Chicago, Award of the Year (1951) * Honorary Doctor of Laws, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana (1964)

References

External links

* *
AdamArenson.com “Banking on Beauty” spreadsheet/PDF and map

Millard Sheets: A Legacy of Art and Architecture
(complete PDF booklet about his work created for the Getty Pacific Standard Time project by the

Los Angeles Conservancy The Los Angeles Conservancy is a historic preservation organization in Los Angeles, California that works to document, rescue and revitalize historic buildings, places and neighborhoods in the city. The Los Angeles Conservancy is the largest m ...

)
Interview of Millard Sheets
Oral history interview with Millard Sheets, 1986 October-1988 July. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
List of artworks by Millard Sheets at the Smithsonian American Art Museum"1934: A New Deal for Artists" (exhibition on the Great Depression featuring Millard Sheets and his contemporaries), Smithsonian American Art MuseumCalifornia WatercolorList of artworks by Millard Sheets at the Ruth Chandler Wiliamson Gallery of Scripps College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheets, Millard 1907 births 1989 deaths Painters from California American watercolorists 20th-century American painters American male painters People from Pomona, California Architects from California Chouinard Art Institute alumni Otis College of Art and Design faculty 20th-century American architects Scripps College faculty American mosaic artists World War II artists 20th-century American war artists Art in Greater Los Angeles