Painter, lecturer and teacher Maurice Braun was born in Nagy Bittse, Hungary, but had emigrated to New York by age 4. At 20 he began studying art with E.M. Ward and George Maynard at the National Academy of Fine Art, and later with William Merit Chase in New York. In 1902-3 he traveled to Europe to study the Old Masters.

In 1910 Braun moved permanently to San Diego, California where he became one of the pioneers of Western American Art. He was widely considered a premier California landscape artist and was certainly the most famous of the early San Diego painters. His paintings were widely accepted for their strong impressionistic qualities and close attention to the outdoor effects of light.

For nearly three decades, Braun earned an enviable record of honors including the coveted Hallgarten Prize from the National Academy and Gold Medals at the 1910 and 1916 World Fairs. His paintings received critical acclaim nationwide and he was to become Southern California's leading contributor to the national art scene.