Paul Lauritz (Norwegian-American, 1889-1975)
 
This original oil on panel by Paul  Lauritz measures 12" x 14" or in the period wood frame dimensions of 17-1/2" x 19-1/2" and is signed lower right,  Paul Lauritz.  The painting is also inscribed verso with the title,  signature and dated...  'Alaska Winter'  Paul Lauritz May 20, (19)55  .  This original oil painting was given to a couple living in California as a wedding present by the artist who was there neighbor in the 1950's.  The painting is in good condition and is a quintessential example of one of Paul Lauritz's paintings of Alaska.
 
Biography:
Paul Lauritz (actually Paul Lauritzen ) (born April 18, 1889 in Larvik , died October 31, 1975 in Glendale ) was a Norwegian-American painter. The parents were "gravesite" Lauritz Olsen and wife Maren Sofie.
 
He was exposed to art at a young age and studied with local and foreign artists in his hometown. At the age of 16, Lauritz moved to Eastern Canada to live with her sister and got a job as a miner.
He worked his way west as a commercial artist in Vancouver and Portland. In the latter place, Lauritz began painting landscapes and portraits. The modest outcome as an art painter brought him to Alaska during the Gold Rush . Lauritz did not succeed in the gold mines and turned to paint again. He became a close friend of the artist Sydney Laurence. The two artists organized a joint exhibition before Lauritz left Alaska.
 
In 1919, he moved to Los Angeles and opened a studio in the Lyceum Theater on Spring Street. When Lauritz did not teach at the Chouinard School of Art and the Otis Institute or in his own studio, he made painting trips to the Sierra Nevada , up the California coast as far north as Carmel, Mexico (1921), Columbia River (1924) and Norway (1925).
 
In his homeland, King Haakon VII asked him to make a painting for the royal castle.
Lauritz was an active member of the Los Angeles artist community and served six years on the Los Angeles Municipal Art Commission.
 
He was a diverse painter. Lauritz's themes included desert scenes, portraits, snow scenes, the navy as well as landscapes. Lauritz continued painting until his death in 1975.
 
He is represented in the Sacramentos Crocker Art Museum, Irvine Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Art and Carnegie Museum of Art in Oxnard.