John Boit Morse1911 - 1988 Born in San Francisco in 1911, John Boit Morse was the son of Samuel Finley Brown Morse, the wealthy and powerful developer of Pebble Beach golf resorts on the Monterey Peninsula. After John graduated from Yale University, he spent time as a semi-professional hockey player, a World War II veteran, and a Madison Avenue advertising executive. In 1948 he also briefly served as president of his father’s Del Monte Properties Company before unexpectedly leaving it all behind to become a full-time artist in 1953. Morse explained that he felt more compelled to paint than to manage the powerful empire he stood to inherit. He went on to create modernist abstract paintings embodying the vibrant atmosphere of the American West. He also drew and collaged quirky maps, graphs, symbols, and quotations reflecting his strong humanistic values. He released these as limited-edition lithographs. Although John traveled throughout the world, most of his time was spent in the Monterey area. He found joy in his creative life and took a sincere interest in the artistic community, where he contributed to many civic and cultural activities. He mounted many solo exhibitions, and his work is found in numerous public and private collections throughout the United States. He died in 1988. To this day, the John Boit Morse Memorial Fellowship at Yale supports independent fine art research in his memory.