The Annual Gold Medal Exhibition pays tribute to its pioneering artists who inspired California Impressionism – the first artistic movement defined as purely Californian. The highly-anticipated display has gained the reputation as the most vital platform for demonstrating the best of the realist genre – from pristine landscapes and grittier urban scenes to novel still lifes and evocative figurative paintings and sculptures – all being exhibited for the first time. Gold Medal artists use classical methods to express vital modern messages, ranging from environmental preservation to social issues and attitudes. With the 113th installment of this storied exhibition on view at the Hilbert, visitors are offered a rare opportunity to view nearly 180 exceptional representational works by 163 artists.