MARK HILBERT
CO-FOUNDER
HILBERT MUSEUM
WHY: Local philanthropist and art collector. Founder of Newport Beach-based Hilbert Property Management. Wife Janet, who passed away in December 2024, was a former professor at Santa Ana College. Both co-founded Hilbert Museum at Chapman University in 2016 to showcase their personal collection of over 5K California scene paintings, works of movie and animation art and American illustration, a trove valued at $25M.
IN THE NEWS: Opened the overhauled Hilbert Museum of California Art in early 2024. Financed the $12M expansion, which added a second building and tripled the museum’s size from 7.6K to 22K square feet. Post expansion, the museum has doubled its visitors to 60K. Aiming for 100K annual visitors in two years. The museum’s collection took center stage at the Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach this year, where this year’s theme was “Gold Coast: Treasures of California.”
QUOTABLE: “Janet was a beacon of light whose love for art and education will continue to inspire and bring joy to all who walk through the galleries of the Hilbert Museum.” — Hilbert Museum after Janet’s passing.
“I found our first California Scene painting at a consignment shop in Palm Springs that had a complete assortment of California watercolors. It was love at first sight.” — Mark Hilbert
