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John William Hilton (1904-1983) Capistrano Gold image 1
John William Hilton (1904-1983) Capistrano Gold image 2
John William Hilton (1904-1983) Capistrano Gold image 3
John William Hilton (1904-1983) Capistrano Gold image 4
Lot 118

John William Hilton
(1904-1983)
Capistrano Gold

26 September – 7 October 2025, 12:00 EDT
Skinner Marlborough, Massachusetts

Sold for US$1,280 inc. premium

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John William Hilton (1904-1983)

Capistrano Gold
signed and dated 'John W. Hilton 51' (lower right); identified on a handwritten label from Martha Neuman's Little Gallery (affixed to the reverse)
oil on board
12 x 16 in. (30.5 x 40.6 cm)
Painted in 1951.

Footnotes

N.B.
John William Hilton was born in North Dakota and spent part of his childhood in China with his missionary parents. While he is now best known as one of the most iconic desert painters of the American Southwest, he was also a man of many other talents and achievements. He was a highly regarded naturalist whose work led to the identification of over twenty new species of crabs, reptiles, insects, and cacti; a desert guide who led General George Patton through the Mojave Desert; a close friend of Dwight Eisenhower; and a talented musician.

Hilton's deep familiarity with, knowledge of, and love for the nature and landscapes of the American West is evident in his paintings. The present work depicts, with undulating and linear brushstrokes, the dry grass and hot desert sun of Capistrano, California. With otherworldly light and almost surrealist forms, Hilton turns an everyday landscape into an evocative, hypnotizing vision of golds and greens.

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