Sunday Stills, the next challenge: Murals

The Stackpole mural depicts chemical, steel mill, cannery, news gathering, packaging line and other workers as cogs in the machines of industry. As a tribute the mural is compositionally very similar to Rivera’s first sketch (all that Stackpole would have seen) for the recently destroyed Rockefeller Center mural.

Library, a public library interior mural at Coit Tower was painted by Bernard Zakheim a Polish Jew who sought political asylum in San Francisco after World War I. Zakheim helped organize the Coit Tower mural project along with Ralph Stackpole.  An experienced muralist, Zakheim’s scene includes portraits of fellow artists, assistants and his daughter.

One of the figures, John Langley Howard, reaches for a copy of Karl Marx’s Das Kapital while crumpling a newspaper in his other hand. The titles of books on the shelves include ‘Rexroth,’ (the poet, essayist and social critic Kenneth Rexroth is reaching for a book on the top shelf) ‘Hitler’ and ‘Oscar Wilde’ (controversial because he was suspected of being homosexual). Newspaper headlines cover the artists protest of the Rivera fresco destruction (which Stackpole is reading) and other topical subjects. Jewish literature and traditions are also included in the painting.

The girl in the blue dress is artist Bernhard Zackheim’s daughter.

City Life is one of the largest murals at Coit Tower painted by Victor Mikhail Arnautoff who had worked as an assistant to Diego Rivera in Mexico and taught at the California School of Fine Arts (CSFA). Arnautoff later taught at Stanford University returning to Russia after the death of his wife.

The controversial mural includes a traffic accident (rear centre), armed robbery (front right) and leftist newspapers. In addition a fire engine (Knickerbocker Engine Company No.5—a tribute to Lilly Hitchcock-Coit) and the San Francisco Stock Exchange (with sculptures by fellow muralist Ralph Stackpole) are depicted.

“Picking Oranges” by Maxine Albro

California Agriculture, a mural by Maxine Albro depicts farming tasks associated with the four seasons. The NRA and eagle symbol on the crates workers are filling with oranges refers to the National Recovery Administration and the Blue Eagle Drive.

The Blue Eagle Drive was the name given to a moral propaganda campaign to convince business to “do their part” and adhere to self governmental codes to hasten recovery from the depression.

“Department Store” by Frede Vidar

Available for purchase are fabrics, toys, wines and music. Shoppers rest at the lunch counter where the special is advertised at 25c

The Cowboy on the left of the picture  is one of four separate panels produced by Wight (Leaders of California Life)

“Dairy Farming” by Gordon Langdon

For more information and more incredible murals visit my set of the murals on Flickr – I obtained the information from a US Teaching History website which seems to have disappeared now.

Now pay your $5 to go up in a rickety lift to the top of the tower where you have 360°panoramic views of the city and bay. Incredible!