Channing Peake

American, 1910-1989. Channing Peake was a prominent Santa Barbara County painter. He was famous for drawings and paintings depicting life around the world. The painter worked with artists like Edward Borein, Rico Lebrun, and Diego Rivera. Peake also spent many years in San Franciso, New York, Mexico, and France and was one of the best painters of California. The painter was born in 1910 in Marshall in Colorado. Channing Peake was inclined towards painting since he was a child. With guidance from his art teacher at high school, Barbara Morgan, who was also a photographer, Peake decided to pursue arts. In 1928 the artist received a scholarship to study at the California School of Arts and Crafts. He later also went on to learn at the Santa Barbara School of Fine Arts. During his time in Santa Barbara, Channing Peake helped Edward Borein with his painting El Paseo. The artist was fascinated with the fresco mural as a prominent medium.

He also traveled through Mexico and created artworks depicting life in Mexico. In Mexico City, Peake worked at the National Palace on murals while he was an assistant to Diego Rivera. After moving to New York, the artist studied at the Art Students League. During this time, he was commissioned by the WPA to create two major mural projects. Some of the famous Channing Peake artworks include murals at the Pennsylvania Station and the Germanic Museum at Harvard University. For both these works, the painter assisted Rico Lebrun and Lewis Rubenstein, respectively. During the 1940s, the painter moved back to Santa Barbara, and resided there for nearly two decades, and continued to paint from his studio at the Santa Ynez Valley. Channing Peake's artwork for sale is often available with leading auction galleries. Collectors can also find Channing Peake's artwork at auction online on prominent auction platforms.