John Frost was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on May 14, 1890 to the famous American illustrator Arthur B. Frost. Jack, as he was called, studied art under his father. In 1906, the family moved to Paris where Frost and his father shared a studio. He studied for several years at Academie Julian under artists Jean Paul Laurens, Jean Pierre Carre, and Richard Miller. Frost spent time in Giverny with fellow California painter Guy Rose, and was influenced by Monet and the Impressionists.

The years 1912-1914 were spent fighting tuberculosis in the sanitarium Davos Platz in Switzerland. Upon his recovery, he moved back to New York and set up a studio, illustrating magazines. After establishing himself as a successful illustrator in New York, in 1918 he settled in Pasadena, California, and married Priscilla Geiger in 1922. The beauty and vastness of the California landscapes inspired Frost to create extraordinary paintings. 

When Frost’s father died, he moved to the suburbs of Philadelphia near Bryn Mawr, occupying the former estate of Frost’s grandfather. During this period, due to the poor turn of his health, Frost produced fewer paintings. Later on in his career, he took on sporting subjects such as hunting and fishing scenes, and eventually gained a reputation as a fine sporting artist. One of his notable series was published in The Sportsman magazine in 1935 and made into printed editions.

Experiencing debilitating health, Frost moved back to California in 1936 to spend his remaining years. His works were often shown at the Stendahl Gallery and the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Frost painted luminous, colorful landscapes of the High Sierra, as well as the desert and village scenes of Southern California. He died in Pasadena on June 5, 1937.

Member: California Art Club; Painters & Sculptors of Los Angeles; Pasadena Society of Fine Arts.

Exhibited: California Art Club, 1920, 1926; Southwest Museum, 1921, 1922, 1923; Biltmore Galleries, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1930; Pasadena Society of Artists, 1924, 1931; Painters and Sculptors of Southern California, 1924, 1925, 1926; Stendahl Galleries, 1924, 1925; Gardena High School, 1928, 1931, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1937; Occidental College, 1929; Kanst Art Gallery, 1931; Academy of Western Painters, 1937.

Works Held: Gardena High School.

Sources: Artists in California: 1786-1940, Edan Hughes
A Private Collection of Paintings by Some of the Living Artists of Southern California, Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey
In and Out of California: Travels of American Impressionists, Laguna Art Museum
The A.B. Frost Book, Henry M. Reed