About this Work
About the Artist
Italian, American
b. 1858 Liguria, Italy
d. 1918 San Francisco, CaliforniaCalifornia landscape painter Giuseppe Cadenasso was born in 1858 in a small village near Genoa, Italy. At age nine he sailed from Genoa to northern California where his uncle owned a vineyard. As a young man he found employment in San Francisco as a barber and waiter. He also sang Italian opera at the Tivoli Opera House. His raw talent as an artist was discovered by Jules Tavernier, who took him to the studio of Joseph Harrington for art lessons. Cadenasso later earned enough money for further study under Arthur Mathews at the Mark Hopkins Institute. His studio-home on Russian Hill at 17 Macondray Lane was called “The Sign of the Eucalyptus.” He later moved across the bay where he painted scenes of the marshes and eucalyptus trees of Berkeley, Oakland, and Alameda. From 1902 -1917 Cadenasso was head of the art department at Mills College. Motivated by tone and harmony, Cadenasso developed an original style and often used his fingers to spread the colors. His lyrical landscapes earned him the title of “the Corot of California.” Returning home from seeing his son off to World War I, Cadenasso was struck by an automobile at Powell and Post Streets in San Francisco and died of injuries on Feb. 11, 1918. A grove of eucalyptus trees in Golden Gate Park has been named the “Cadenasso Group” in his honor. His works are held in San Francisco at the de Young Museum, the Legion of Honor and the Bohemian Club; at the Oakland Museum and Mills College in Oakland; at St. Mary’s College in Moraga; and at the Nevada State Capitol (portrait of Governor Jones).
b. 1858 Liguria, Italy
d. 1918 San Francisco, CaliforniaCalifornia landscape painter Giuseppe Cadenasso was born in 1858 in a small village near Genoa, Italy. At age nine he sailed from Genoa to northern California where his uncle owned a vineyard. As a young man he found employment in San Francisco as a barber and waiter. He also sang Italian opera at the Tivoli Opera House. His raw talent as an artist was discovered by Jules Tavernier, who took him to the studio of Joseph Harrington for art lessons. Cadenasso later earned enough money for further study under Arthur Mathews at the Mark Hopkins Institute. His studio-home on Russian Hill at 17 Macondray Lane was called “The Sign of the Eucalyptus.” He later moved across the bay where he painted scenes of the marshes and eucalyptus trees of Berkeley, Oakland, and Alameda. From 1902 -1917 Cadenasso was head of the art department at Mills College. Motivated by tone and harmony, Cadenasso developed an original style and often used his fingers to spread the colors. His lyrical landscapes earned him the title of “the Corot of California.” Returning home from seeing his son off to World War I, Cadenasso was struck by an automobile at Powell and Post Streets in San Francisco and died of injuries on Feb. 11, 1918. A grove of eucalyptus trees in Golden Gate Park has been named the “Cadenasso Group” in his honor. His works are held in San Francisco at the de Young Museum, the Legion of Honor and the Bohemian Club; at the Oakland Museum and Mills College in Oakland; at St. Mary’s College in Moraga; and at the Nevada State Capitol (portrait of Governor Jones).
