Title supplied by cataloger.; Herman J. Schultheis was born in Aachen, Germany in 1900, and immigrated to the United States in the mid-1920s after obtaining a Ph.D. in mechanical and electrical engineering. He married Ethel Wisloh in 1936, and the pair moved to Los Angeles the following year. He worked in the film industry from the late 1930s to the mid-1940s, most notably on the animated features Fantasia and Pinocchio. His detailed notebook, documenting the special effects for Fantasia, is the subject of a 14-minute short-subject included on the film's DVD. In 1949, he started employment with Librascope as a patent engineer. Schultheis was an avid amateur photographer who traveled the world with his cameras. It was on one of these photographic exhibitions in 1955 that he disappeared in the jungles of Guatemala. His remains were discovered 18 months later. The digitized portion of this collection represents the images Schultheis took of Los Angeles and its surrounding communities after he relocated to the area in 1937. Originally named Agricultural Park in 1876, the 160-acre site was developed and served as an agricultural and horticultural fairground until approximately 1910, at which point it was re-named Exposition Park. On November 6, 1913, Exposition Park was formally dedicated, and became the home to a state Exposition Building and the county Museum of History, Science and Art. The State Exposition Building, designed by William D. Coates, Jr., state architect, and Nathaniel Ellery, state engineer, opened in 1912 and housed simple, agriculturally based displays of natural resources and industrial products from across the state. The California Science Center main building today blends the facade of the State Exposition Building with a new structure. The tapestries and furniture in this exhibit are so artistic; it is hard to think of them as being agricultural displays, but the glass containers of fruit next to the large vase in the center of the room match those found in the main hall. The closest tapestry depicts farm life, and two gourds stand out against a dark display case next to bronze statue of football players in the center of this room in the State Exposition Building. Architecturally significant details of the room include stained glass panes above the leaded glass doors and an intricately carved ceiling.
Type
image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;11 x 15 cm. Photographic prints
State Exposition Building (Los Angeles, Calif.) Exhibition buildings--California--Los Angeles Museum exhibits--California--Los Angeles Tapestry--California--Los Angeles Sculpture--California--Los Angeles Parks--California--Los Angeles Exposition Park (Los Angeles, Calif.) Schultheis Collection photographs Coates, William D.,1880-1953 Ellery, Nathaniel
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