Local Color: The Di Rosa Collection of Contemporary California Art

192 p. Illustrations. List of Plates. List of Artists in the collection as of October 1, 1998 Rene di Rosa began collecting art in the '60s and displaying it at his gorgeous vineyard estate in the California Napa Valley. In 1997, his home, renamed the di Rosa Preserve, opened to the public, showcasing more than 1, 500 works by hundreds of California artists. Vibrant, colorful, humorous, and eclectic, the di Rosa collection reflects the unique aesthetic of California modern art, including many works by Roy De Forest, Robert Arneson, William T. Wiley, Robert Hudson, and others. "Local Color presents a selection of the best of the di Rosa collection, featuring the work of 76 California artists. Here are compelling, amusing, and enlightening works by Squeak Carnwath, Imogen Cunningham, Alan Rath, Ruth Bernhard, Bruce Conner, Peter Saul, James Barsness, David Best, Joan Brown, Manuel Neri, and scores of others, each accompanied by a brief essay about the artist. Critic Tessa deCarlo and artist Maria Porges contribute essays, and Rene di Rosa and Richard Reisman, curator, add a provocative foreword. As unbridled and brilliantly colorful as the peacocks who roam the di Rosa Preserve, "Local Color offers art lovers everywhere an opportunity to explore a vision of art fueled by pure dedication to exuberant creative expression. From an death notice posted by the Di Rosa organization on-line: NAPA, CA October 4, 2010. Di Rosa, a public museum and sculpture park, regrets to announce the passing of beloved founder Rene di Rosa. Mr. di Rosa died at age 91 on the evening of October 3, 2010 at his home in Napa. His legacy of support for artists in Northern California is carried on through his extensive art collection and 217 acre estate in the Carneros region of the Napa Valley which opened to the public in 1997. A legendary philanthropist, art collector, and vineyardist, Rene di Rosa was born May 14, 1919 in Boston the only son of Maude Cupples Scudder and Italian Cosul Gustavo di Rosa. He graduated from Yale University where he served as editor of the Yale Daily News. After serving in the US Navy, Rene moved to Paris where he hoped to write the great American novel. The book failed to materialize, but life on the Left Bank sparked his lifelong admiration for artists, and he purchased his first painting before returning to America and settling in San Francisco. He took a job as general assignment reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle. During the late 1950 s, Rene took a lively interest in the North Beach art community associated with the Beats in San Francisco. His interest in the arts was nourished by the independence and iconoclasm of that era. Rene di Rosa followed his passions, freely ignoring fashions, trends, or the opinions of art world experts and remained true to his personal vision during the ensuing five decades of acquiring what is considered the most significant holding of Bay Area art in the world. During his life he served on the board of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the National Advisory Board of the Whitney Museum of American Art, and was the recipient of many honors and awards for his patronage, including an Honorary Doctorate from the San Francisco Art Institute. Rene di Rosa was also a pioneer grape grower in the Napa Valley, and later became active in environmental movements and philanthropy. In 1960, he purchased a 450 acre parcel in the southern reaches of the Napa Valley in an area that subsequently was accorded the Carneros appellation. In a region that had been forgotten after prohibition, Rene turned his Winery Lake Vineyard into one of the finest California vineyards, fetching some of the highest prices for its grapes. He converted the historic stone winery on the property into a residence, moved in as a permanent Napa resident, and filled it with art. Rene took viticulture classes at the University of California at Davis where he would often wander into the art department. There he met many of the a.…