Esther Bruton

Esther Bruton is best known for her work as a muralist for the New Deal Public Works of Art Project. Born in Alameda, California, Esther had two sisters, Margaret and Helen, who were also artists, and who collaborated on painted and mosaic murals. Esther followed her older sister Margaret to New York where Esther studied at the Art Students League with George Bridgeman. She found a job as a commercial illustrator for the department store Lord and Taylor. Bruton returned to California where she worked as an illustrator for I. Magnin until 1929. She painted murals for the cocktail lounge of the Fairmount Hotel in San Francisco and became a part of the art community in that city.