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Pomona’s
Presidential
Portrait
Gallery
Pomona College has been commissioning portraits of its presidents and,
in some cases, distinguished trustees and faculty, since its beginnings,
and its presidential gallery now includes seven canvases, all on display
in the College’s Alexander Hall for Administration.
 President Cyrus G. Baldwin, 1898
Oscar S. F. Kunath (1830-1909)
Oil on canvas, 50 x 40 1/2”
Gift of unknown donor
Pomona’s widely revered first president, Cyrus Grandison Baldwin
(1890-1897), fell victim to the financial crises of the College’s early
years. Failing to raise enough funds for the struggling college, he
resigned in 1897. Baldwin’s portrait, commissioned a year later, bore
witness to the high regard in which he continued to be held, as did his
elevation to emeritus status in 1916. The artist, Oscar Kunath, known
for genre and landscape, as well as figure painting, taught in San
Francisco where his work is held in public collections.
 President George A. Gates, 1909
Hannah Tempest Jenkins (1786-1940)
Oil on canvas 54 x 43”
Commissioned by the Class of 1909
Like President Baldwin, George Augustus Gates
(1901-1910), who oversaw a
period of major capital and curricular expansion, was much loved.
Ultimately, however, he was unable to bear the strain of constant
fundraising and resigned in 1909. His portrait, commissioned by his last
senior class, was painted by Pomona professor Hannah Tempest Jenkins,
whom Gates had hired. Jenkins, who had studied in Philadelphia and
Paris, was the first director of the School of Art and Design (to become
the Department of Fine Arts), and, in 1905, founded the Rembrandt Club.
 President James A. Blaisdell, 1928
John Hubbard Rich (1876-1954)
Oil on canvas, 56 1/2 x 44 1/2”
Gift of Pomona College Alumni
James Arnold Blaisdell (1910-1928) led Pomona through an extraordinary
period of growth that included the creation of The Claremont Colleges in
1928. Blaisdell’s portrait was one of five commissioned by the College
at the time of President Edmunds’s inauguration in 1928. Artist John
Hubbard Rich founded the Los Angeles School for Painting and
Illustrating at USC in 1914 and later taught at Otis Institute. Rich
shows Blaisdell holding a small volume, possibly a book of prayer.
 President Charles K. Edmunds, (undated)
Lucy Drake Marlow (1890-1978)
Oil on canvas, 52 1/2 x 50”
Charles Keyser Edmunds (1928-1941) was the first president of Pomona who
was not an ordained minister. His strong ties to China, where he had
served for many years as president of Canton Christian College (later
Lingnan University), are reflected in the furniture and objects that
surround him in his portrait. Artist Lucy Drake Marlow was born in
Pennsylvania and trained in Philadelphia and New York. Moving to Tucson,
she became that city’s best-known portraitist of the 1930s.
 President E. Wilson Lyon, 1966
Charles P. Cross
Oil on canvas, 431/2 x 511/2”
Gift of Gladys K. Montgomery
The 28-year presidency of Elijah Wilson Lyon (1941-1969) was the longest
in Pomona’s history. The College we know today owes much to his
leadership, and his History of Pomona College (1977) remains the most
reliable source of information about the College. Lyon’s portrait was
commissioned on the occasion of his 25th year as president. Though the
book he holds is indistinct, it may be Granite and Sagebrush: The First
50 Years of Pomona College, published by Professor Frank P. Brackett in
1944.
 President David Alexander, 1993
John Howard Sanden
Oil on canvas, 48 x 36”
Gift of H. Russell Smith ’36
A portrait of President John David Alexander (1969-1991) was painted
during Pomona’s centennial year, 1987, by New York portraitist John
Howard Sanden. Reverting to earlier tradition, Alexander is shown in
academic regalia. The book beside him is a volume containing the four
centennial issues of PCM. Sanden, one of the country’s best-known
portraitists, founded The Portrait Institute. In 1991, the Alexander
portrait disappeared, presumably stolen. A duplicate by Sanden was given
to the College by H. Russell Smith ’36.
 President Peter W. Stanley, 2003-04
Ron Sherr
Oil on canvas 50 x 38”
President Peter William Stanley (1991-2003) is also shown in academic
regalia, standing in one of his favorite spaces, the interior of Bridges
Hall of Music, which was completely renovated during his tenure.
Commissioned by the College, his portrait was painted by noted New York
portraitist Ron Sherr. (See story above.)
The Missing President
You may have noticed that there is an unexplained gap between the
tenures of Presidents Baldwin and Gates. If you check a list of Pomona’s
presidents, you will find that gap occupied by President Franklin LaDu
Ferguson (1897-1901). President Ferguson is the only one of Pomona’s
eight former presidents not represented by a portrait. His four-year
term was noted for capital expansion, including the building of the
President’s House, but was marred by governance conflicts and
controversy that ultimately led the Board of Trustees to request his
resignation. Unlike his predecessor, Ferguson did not enjoy later
recognition by the College. |
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