Like many of the painters associated with “California Impressionism” in the early part of the 20th Century, Joseph Kleitsch came from outside California, in his case originally form Hungary.
Kleitsch came to the U.S. in 1901, settled in Ohio and eventually Kansas, Mexico City and Chicago before finding his way to Laguna Beach California in 1920. Along the way he became a well established portrait painter, and received high praise for his portraits and interior scenes.
During his time in California he developed a bright, high-chroma style rich with painterly flourish and broken color. In the mid-1920s, Kleitsch traveled to Europe for two years, on his return bringing expressionist colors and distortions into his work.
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What I really like about his paintings is his ability to break the color patterns and yet blend the the overall texture of the painting to create a wonderful portrayal of color.