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Palace of Fine Arts — The checkable facts
Quick answer
The Palace of Fine Arts was built for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition out of plaster and fibre over a wooden frame, designed by Bernard Maybeck to look like an abandoned classical ruin. It was meant to come down with the rest of the fair. Walter S. Johnson's $2 million gift in 1959 paid to recast it in concrete between 1964 and 1967.
| Claim | Source |
|---|---|
| Designed by Bernard Maybeck for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition | Wikipedia — Palace of Fine Arts |
| Originally framed in wood and covered with staff, a mixture of plaster and burlap-type fibre | Wikipedia — Palace of Fine Arts |
| Maybeck described the effect as 'sadness modified by the feeling that beauty has a soothing influence' | Palace of Fine Arts Theatre — History |
| Sculptures on the colonnade supplied by Ulric Ellerhusen | Wikipedia — Palace of Fine Arts |
| Walter S. Johnson announced a $2 million donation on 25 May 1959 to fund reconstruction | Palace of Fine Arts Theatre — History |
| Rebuilt in permanent materials between 1964 and 1967 | Wikipedia — Palace of Fine Arts |
| From 1947 it served as a Park Department warehouse, telephone book distribution centre, storage depot and temporary Fire Department headquarters | Wikipedia — Palace of Fine Arts |
Frequently asked
Why does the Palace of Fine Arts look like a ruin?
Because Maybeck designed it that way. The brief was a quiet zone in the middle of a crowded fair, and what he drew was a classical structure that had been abandoned and half forgotten beside a lagoon. He described the effect he wanted as sadness modified by the feeling that beauty has a soothing influence.
Is the Palace of Fine Arts the original 1915 building?
No. The original was staff — plaster over a burlap-type fibre on a wooden frame, meant to be demolished with the rest of the fair. It was taken down and recast in steel and concrete between 1964 and 1967. What stands is a permanent reproduction of a temporary building imitating a ruin.
Who are the figures on top of the colonnade?
Sculptures by Ulric Ellerhusen, usually called the weeping women. They stand with their backs turned, heads bowed over boxes they lean on, and they are mourning — that is the whole point. The boxes were meant to be planted so vines would spill down and finish the illusion of abandonment.
Who saved the Palace of Fine Arts from demolition?
Walter S. Johnson, a businessman and philanthropist, who announced a $2 million gift in May 1959 towards rebuilding it in permanent materials. Demolition had been a live option: by the 1950s the plaster was coming off in sheets and the building had spent decades as warehouse space.
When is the best time to visit the Palace of Fine Arts?
Dusk. The lighting is aimed at the colonnade, the reflection in the lagoon does the work Maybeck intended, and the crowds thin out after dark. It is free, open, and never ticketed, so the only cost of coming at the right hour is the hour.
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