PALACE OF FINE ARTS

Description

Essentials about the Palace of Fine Arts in brief

Located on the border of the Marina District and the Presidio, the Palace of Fine Arts is one of San Francisco’s most unusual buildings. Looking at the structure, one feels more like being in Rome or Athens, as the influences of Roman or Greek architecture are clearly visible and especially the dome in the center of the complex is strongly reminiscent of temples in Italy or Greece. Once used as an exhibition hall, the Palace of Fine Arts now serves private and corporate events.

The history of the Palace of Fine Arts

The Palace of Fine Arts was originally built for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915. The architect was Bernard Maybeck, one of the famous representatives of the Arts and Crafts Movement. The Japanese Tea House and the Palace of Fine Arts were the only two buildings that were not demolished after the Exposition. The original intention was to leave the Palace, made of perishable building material (a type of man-made stone), standing so that it itself would crumble, because every great city needs its ruins. However, because San Francisco residents wanted to preserve the new landmark, money was raised as early as the 1930s to gently rehabilitate the building.

Then, in the 1960s, when the building was actually crumbling beyond repair, the palace was demolished except for the steel skeleton of the exhibition hall and rebuilt with durable construction materials. With few exceptions, all the decorations and sculptures were also rebuilt.

From 2003 to 2009, however, extensive renovation was again undertaken to improve seismic safety and water quality, repair structural damage, and reintroduce new plants and waterfowl. Australian eucalyptus trees now line the eastern shore of the lagoon and many new species of wildlife have found a home, including swans, ducks, geese, turtles, frogs, and raccoons.

The Palace of Fine Arts Exhibition Hall, which housed Impressionist paintings during the 1915 exhibition, was the home of the hands-on science museum Exploratorium until 2013. Today, the Palace is used as a venue for private and corporate events, trade shows, conferences, galas and even weddings. Speaking of weddings: In the Rotunda with its dome, wedding couples can often be seen having a photo shoot.