The life and work of Marion Osborn Cunningham, a conversation with Priscilla Wheeler

In March of 1956, Bakersfield Museum of Art opened its doors as the Cunningham Gallery after a donation from the Osborn family who wanted to establish an art gallery in memory of their daughter, artist Marion Osborn Cunningham. Cunningham was born in 1908 in Indiana, as the first of three children of Walter and Priscilla Osborn. The family settled in Bakersfield in 1911, their first home was on Sunset Avenue. Marion attended Bakersfield High School (then known as Kern County Union High School) and studied art under the beloved Mrs. Ruth Emerson. After continuing her studies at Santa Barbara City College and then Stanford University, Marion made her home in San Francisco. There she quickly gained national recognition for her artwork. In the 1930s she was well known as a pastel artist, and in the 1940s for her printmaking. Her small compositions were praised for their curious, dream-like charm and color harmony. She maintained a studio on Montgomery Street, the center of San Francisco’s art colony. Her untimely death at the age of 39 cut her prolific career short, but Cunningham and her work continue to reign as a significant facet of BMoA's history and legacy. Tune in to hear more about Cunningham’s life and work as we interview the artist’s niece Priscilla Wheeler.