Reginald Machell
Reginald Willoughby Machell (1854-1927) was an English painter whose best-known work is The Path. After he met H. P. Blavatsky in London in 1888, he joined the Theosophical Society. A few years later he moved to California and lived at Point Loma.
Artistic career
Machell studied in Paris at the Académie Julian. He was a member of the Royal Society of British Artists, and exhibited at the Royal Academy.
His creativity extended into the making of furniture:
At Point Loma, he carved chairs, screens and stools decorated with forms reminiscent of Art Nouveau, Celtic interlace, Gothic tracery, flames and wings. They are wonderfully inventive, completely unlike any other furniture made in America. The throne he created for Tingley is typical: the back and sides of the chair are carved into fantastic writhing shapes and the whole is painted in a cream color. In effect, the chair is a platform for a collection of carved panels, a virtuoso display of design and chisel-work. But it’s not a great example of sound construction: the joints are held together with pegs, which are notoriously prone to coming loose. As for the symbolism of the intertwining elements of the disk and the winglike forms above, it’s anybody’s guess. Machell left no explanation[1]
His work was exhibited at the Panama California Exposition in San Diego in 1915, along with that of three other Point Loma artists - Leonard Lester, Maurice Braun, and Edith White.[2]
Later years
Machell died in San Diego on October 8, 1927.
Notes
- ↑ Janet Koplos and Bruce Metcalf, "Reginald Machell at Point Loma," excerpt from Makers: A History of American Studio Craft, University of North Carolina Press, 2010. Available from the Center for Craft, Creativity and Design. [1]
- ↑ Bruce Kamerling, “Theosophy and Symbolist Art: the Point Loma Art School,” The Journal of San Diego History 26:4 (Fall 1980).[2]
Additional resources
- Some of Machell's other paintings can be viewed at a BBC (British Broadcasting Company) web page.[3]