Arthur W. Best (California, 1859-1935) oil on board painting of the Grand Canyon, as viewed from the top of the canyon, with a tree in left foreground. Signed lower left. Housed in an ogee molded giltwood frame. Sight – 11″ H x 16″ W. Framed – 16 1/2″ H x 21 1/2″ W. Note: This painting is shown hanging in the Murrays’ home in an old photograph provided by the present consignor. Artist Biography: “One of the more prominent early 20th-century landscape painters in Northern California, Arthur Best was especially known for his paintings of the Grand Canyon, Arizona desert, and Sierra Nevada mountains. With his wife, he founded the Best Art School in San Francisco…He became a staff artist for the San Francisco Examiner, and in 1904, did a series of Grand Canyon paintings. In 1905, he was commissioned by the Southern Pacific Railroad to paint pictures of the Southwest and Mexico. Many of his paintings were destroyed in the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.” Source: Edan Hughes, ARTISTS IN CALIFORNIA, 1786-1940. Note: This painting is shown hanging in the Murray’s home in an old photograph provided by the present consignor. Businessman John Francis Murray (1872-1936)was president of the American Home Products company and of the John F. Murray Advertising agency of New York. CONDITION: Some craquelure lower center; some abrasions along edge of board near frame. Possible 4″ scratch (overpainted) at lower center near frame edge. Frame with a few small losses, overpainted with gilt paint.