Painter. Born in Sedalia, MO on January 20, 1867. "Chan" Townsley moved with his family to Kansas in 1875. He grew up there and attended Washburn College. Having opted for an art career, he sailed for Paris for several years of study at Academies Delecluse and Julian. Returning to the U.S., he became associated with William Merritt Chase in New York City,; he managed the Chase Shinnecock School on Long Island and organized the Chase art classes in Europe. In 1905 Townsley went to England and founded the London School of Art, serving as director and instructor along with Frank Brangwyn and other well-known English artists. In 1910 he returned to America to concentrate on painting. Arriving in Pasadena in 1914, he was director of both the Stickney Memorial School and Otis Art Institute. During the summers of 1914 and 1915 he held art classes on the Monterey Peninsula. Townsley died on December 2, 1921 in London, England while planning a sketching trip with Frank Brangwyn.

~ Edan Milton Hughes, Artists in California 1786 – 1940

Member:
California Art Club (President, 1919)
Salmagundi Club (NYC)

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