The City of Domes Part 4

In Paris Captain Baker found the situation discouraging. The first official he saw told him that, under the circ.u.mstances, any partic.i.p.ation of France whatsoever was out of the question: France was in mourning, and did not wish to celebrate anything; if any Frenchman were to suggest partic.i.p.ation he would be criticised; furthermore, Albert Tirman, at the head of the French committee that had visited San Francisco the year before to select the site of the French Pavilion, had come back from the front in the Vosges and was hard at work in the barracks of the Invalides, acting as an intermediary between the civil and military authorities.

Then Captain Baker appealed to Amba.s.sador Myron T. Herrick. Although the amba.s.sador was enthusiastic for the Exposition, he said that, in such a crisis, he could not ask France to spend the four hundred thousand dollars set apart for use in San Francisco. Captain Baker said: "Don't you think if France came in at this time a wonderfully sympathetic effect would be created all over the United States?" The amba.s.sador replied, "I do." "Wouldn't you like to see France partic.i.p.ate?" The amba.s.sador declared that he would. "Will you say so to Mr. Tirman?" The amba.s.sador said, "Willingly."

A week later Baker and Tirman were on their way to Bordeaux to see Gaston Thomson, Minister of Commerce. They made these proposals: The exhibits should be carried by the Jason through the ca.n.a.l to San Francisco; the building of the French Pavilion should be undertaken by the Division of Works of the Exposition, on specification to be cabled to San Francisco of the frame work, the moulds for the columns and architectural ornaments to be prepared in France and s.h.i.+pped by express; the French committee of organization was to work in France among possible exhibitors; a statement was to be made to the ministry of what each department of the government could do in sending exhibits and what exhibits were ready; a statement should come from the Minister of Fine Arts as to how much s.p.a.ce he could occupy and how many paintings could be secured for the Palace of Fine Arts; a complete representation of the Department of Historical Furniture and Tapestries, known as the Garde Meuble, was to be made for the pavilion.

In the interview with the Minister of Commerce Baker argued that, without France, an Exposition could not be international, and that the partic.i.p.ation of France at this time, with her flag flying in San Francisco, would be like winning a battle before the world. It would show the people of the United States France's grat.i.tude for the money sent the wounded and the suffering, and would warm the hearts of the American people.

Thomson responded with enthusiasm, and soon the government became enthusiastic. Several thousand dollars were spent in cabling; Henri Guillaume, the distinguished French architect, experienced in many expositions, was sent out. When the Jason stopped at Ma.r.s.eilles it took, on board one of the most remarkable collections of art treasures ever s.h.i.+pped to a foreign country, the finest things in one of the world's great storehouses of treasure, including even the priceless historical tapestries, and a large collection of French paintings for the Fine Arts Palace, gathered by the French committee after great labor, due to the absence of many of the painters in the war.

When Captain Baker left France he had accomplished far more for the Exposition than he realized himself. Reports of his success in securing French partic.i.p.ation preceded him to Italy and helped to prepare the way. The Italians listened to his proposition, all the more willingly because France had been won over. Besides, he had a warm supporter in Ernesto Nathan, ex-Mayor of Rome, who had paid an extended visit to San Francisco and had become an enthusiastic champion of the Exposition. In a few days he had made arrangements that led to the collection of the splendid display of Italian art, s.h.i.+pped on the Vega, together with many commercial exhibits. Captain Bakers work in France and in Italy, accomplished within three weeks, was a triumph of diplomacy.

Foreign Partic.i.p.ation in General

Germany was not to be completely over-shadowed by France notwithstanding previous indifference on the part of the government. German manufacturers wished to be represented, and they actually received governmental encouragement. Austrians, not to be outdone by Italy, unofficially came in. In fact, despite the war, every country had some representation, England and Scandinavia and Switzerland included, even if they did not have official authority.

There are those who maintain that, in spite of criticism, the Fine Arts Department is now making a better showing than it could have made if there had been no war. American collectors, with rare canvases, were persuaded to help in the meeting of the emergency by lending work that, otherwise, they would have kept at home. It was thought that many of the Europeans would be glad to send their collections to this country for safe keeping during war time. But such proved not to be the case. A good deal of concern was felt about sending the treasures on so long a journey, subject to the hazards of attack by sea. Furthermore, from the European point of view, San Francisco seemed far away.

Looking for Art Treasures

A short time after Captain Baker sailed from New York another emissary went abroad for the Exposition, J. N. Laurvik, the art critic. A few weeks before Mr. Laurvik had returned from Europe, where he had represented the Fine Arts Department, looking for the work of the artists in those countries that were not to partic.i.p.ate officially. At the time of the outbreak he was in Norway and he had already secured the promise of many collections and the co-operation of artists of distinction. His report of the situation as he left it persuaded the authorities that, in spite of the difficulties, he might do effective work.

When Laurvik arrived in Rome he found that Captain Baker had already prepared for his activities. Ernesto Nathan was devoting himself heart and soul to the cause. But the Italian authorities, for the most part, were absorbed in the questions that came up with the threat of war.

Working with the committee, and aided by Amba.s.sador Thomas Nelson Page, Laurvik quickly made progress. He secured magnificent canvases by the President of the French Academy in Rome, Albert Besnard, painted, for the most part, in Benares, with scenes on the Ganges, and a collection of pieces by the Norwegian sculptor, Lerche.

Notable Collections

From Rome Laurvik went to Venice, where he was greatly helped by the American consul, B. H. Carroll, Jr. Though the International Exhibit held in Venice every two years had closed several months before, many of the works of art were still there, their owners, either afraid or unable to take them away and yet concerned about their being so close to the scene of war. It was the general concern that enabled Laurvik to secure some of his finest material. Together with the Italian work, he arranged to have s.h.i.+pped here on the Jason, Norwegian and Hungarian paintings and fifty canvases by the man regarded as the greatest living painter in Finland, Axel Gallen-Kallela. He also made a short journey from Venice to the home of Marinetti, the journalist, poet and leader of the.

Italian Futurist painters, who, after much persuading, promised to send fifty examples of the work done by the ten leaders in his group.

On leaving Venice Laurvik started for Vienna. In spite of the war, he was promised support by the Minister of Art. Unfortunately, the art societies fell to quarreling, and gave little or no help. Then Laurvik appealed to the artists themselves. In Kakosha, one of the best known among the Austrian painters, he found an ally. The collection he made in Vienna included several of Kakosha's canvases, lent by their owners, and a large number of etchings.

The Hungarian Collection

In Hungary Laurvik had a powerful friend in Count Julius Andra.s.sy, a man, of wealth and influence, the owner of one of the newspapers published in Budapest. From, his own collection of Hungarian art Andra.s.sy made a large contribution and he inspired other collectors to do likewise. The getting together of the material was full of difficulties. Much of it had been taken away for safekeeping. The museums were all closed and some of their treasures were buried in the ground. Already the Russians, during their raid on the Carpathian Mountains, had possessed themselves of rare art works, some of the best canvases cut from the frames and carried off by the officials. Among the sufferers was Count Andra.s.sy himself, who lost valuable heirlooms from one of his country estates, including several t.i.tians. In spite of that experience, Andra.s.sy, refused to hide his possessions. He preferred the risk of losing them to showing fear, perhaps helping to start a panic.

The Hungarian collection came near missing the Jason. It was mysteriously held up in the train that carried it through the Italian territory to Italy, arriving in Genoa three days after the Jason was scheduled to so sail from there. But the Jason happened to be delayed three days, too.

By the German steamer, the "Crown Princess Cecilie," it happened that an interesting collection of German Paintings, after being exhibited in the Carnegie Inst.i.tute of Pittsburgh, was started on the way to Germany; but the war caused the s.h.i.+p to return to an American port. After a good deal of negotiating the canvases were secured for the Exposition and taken off the s.h.i.+p.

On the opening day of the Exposition it was found that the Palace of Fine Arts, far from having too little material, had too much. Not only were China and j.a.pan and several of the European nations well represented, but on the way were many art works that there would not be room for. The consequence was that a new building had to be erected. It was finished in July and it became known as the Fine Arts Annex.

I

The View From the Hill

"The best way to see the Exposition, in my opinion," said the architect, "is to stand on the top of the Fillmore Street hill and look down. Then you will find out what the architects were up to. The finest point of observation would be at the corner of Divisadero Street and Broadway."

The next day, as we stood at that point, the Exposition stretched out beneath us like a city of the Orient.

"When the architects first discussed the construction they knew it was to be looked at from these hills. So they had to have a scheme that should hide the skylight and avoid showing lack of finish on top and that should be pictorial and impressive from above. One of the problems was to make the roof architectural. Now as we look down, see how stunning the effect is - like a Persian rug."

"And the color helped there, too, didn't it?"

"Of course. And notice how skilfully the architecture and the coloring harmonized. As the Exposition was to be built on low, flat ground, it had to be lifted up. One way was by using the domes. The central portion of each of those palaces was lifted above the main surface of the roof to introduce a row of semi-circular windows to light the interior like a church. And the domes, besides being ornamental in themselves, gave spring to the towers. The big tower provided scope for the splendid archway that served as an approach and set the standard for the other arches."

It was plain enough that the top of the Exposition had not received the praise it deserved. "Think how crude that scene would have been if it had presented a straggling ma.s.s of roofs. And even as it is, with its graceful lines, if it were lacking in color it would seem crude. Perhaps it will help us to realize how unsightly most of the roofs of our houses are, and how unfinished. There's no reason in the world why they should be. The Greeks and the Romans had the right idea. They were very sensitive to lack of finish. They felt the charm of decorated roofs. See that angel down there that keeps recurring at the points of the gables.

What a pretty bit of ornamentation. The Greeks used it to suggest the gifts of the G.o.ds coming down from heaven. 'Blessings on this house.' I suppose the wreath in the hand used here was meant to suggest the crowning of the work. It explains why the figure is called "Victory." By the way, it has an architectural value in giving lightness and grace to the roofs."

The builders, we could see, had cleverly adapted their plans to the conditions. "The effect might so easily have been monotonous and cold, and it might have been flat and dreary. It was a fine idea to lift the central portion of each of those main palaces above the surfaces of the roofs to introduce the semicircular windows in the domes. It helped to infuse the scene with a kind of tenderness and spirituality. And see how the two groups on top of the triumphal arches, the Orientals and the Pioneers, contribute to the soaring effect and to the finish at the same time. The Romans disliked bareness on the top of their arches. They wanted life up there, the more animated the better. So they put on some of their most dramatic scenes, like their chariot races."

The expert proceeded to point out the architectural balance of the buildings. The severe and mighty Palace of Machinery, impressive in its long sweep of line, at one side made a dramatic contrast with the delicately imagined and poetic Palace of Fine Arts on the other. In front of the walled city, between the long stretch of garden, stood two harmonious buildings, the Palace of Horticulture, with its glorious roof of gla.s.s, and the Festival Hall, closely related in outline, and yet very different in detail. And the garden itself, with its dark, pointed trees standing against the wall, and with its simplicity of design, made an agreeable approach to the great arched entrance under the Tower of Jewels. "Those banners down there, s.h.i.+elding the lights, are a stroke of genius, both in their orange color and their shape. And those orange-colored streamers, how they add to the spirit of gaiety. The trees have been placed against the wall to keep it from seeming like a long and uninteresting stretch. And observe the grace in line of the niches between the trees. Even from here you can feel the warmth of the color in the paths. The pink effect is made by burning the sand. Only a man like Guerin, a painter, would have thought of that detail. I wonder how many visitors down there know that the very sand they walk on has been colored."

Around the Tower pigeons were flying, somehow relieving the mechanical outlines. Was the disproportion between the great arch, forming a kind of pedestal, and the outlines above due to mathematical miscalculation or to the interference of the ornamentation? We finally decided that the proportions had probably been right in the first place. But they had been changed by the Exposition authorities' cutting the Tower down one hundred feet, thereby saving $100,000. A matter of this kind could be reduced almost to an exact science. Besides, though the ornamentation interfered with the upward sweep of line, the effect of flatness was made by those horizontal blocks which seemed to be piled up to the top.

If the outline had been clean, it would have achieved the soaring effect so essential to an inspiring tower, creating the sense of reaching up to the sky, like an invocation.

Thomas Hastings had a sound idea when he made that design. He wanted to do something Expositional, exactly as Guerin did when he applied the coloring. Now there were critics who said that the coloring was too p.r.o.nounced. It reminded them of the theater. Well, that was just what it ought to remind them of. It had life, gaiety, abandon. The critic who said that the orange domes provided just the right tone, and that this tone ought to have been followed throughout, didn't make sufficient allowance for public taste. He wanted the Exposition to be an impressionistic picture in one key. But one key was exactly what Guerin didn't want. His purpose was to catch the excitement in variety of color as well as the warmth, to stimulate the mind. He succeeded in adapting his color scheme to architecture that had breadth and dignity. At first he expected to use orange, blue, and gold, carefully avoiding white. He did avoid white; but he expanded his color scheme and included brown and yellow and green. But, in that tower, Hastings did something out of harmony with the architecture, something barbaric and crude.

Here and there the bits of Austrian cut gla.s.s were sparkling on the tower like huge diamonds. "At times the thing is wonderfully impressive.

There's always something impressive about a ma.s.s if it has any kind of uniformity, and here you can detect an intention on the part of the architect. There are certain lights that have a way of dressing up the tower as a whole, giving it unity and hiding its ugliness. And at all times it has a kind of barbaric splendor. It might have come out of an Aztec mind, rather childish in expression, and seeking for beauty in an elemental way. I can imagine Aztecs living up there in a barbaric fas.h.i.+on, their houses piled, one above another, like our uncivilized apartment houses."

In studying the Tower of Jewels in detail, we decided that it was not really so crude as it seemed on first sight. Much might be done even now by a process of elimination. And the arch was magnificent. "In its present condition the tower unquestionably provides a strong accent. It has already become a dominating influence here. But it's an influence that teaches people to feel and to think in the wrong way. It encourages a liking for what I call messy art, instead of developing a taste for the simplicity that always characterizes the best kind of beauty, the kind that develops naturally out of a central idea."

From the Tower of Jewels we turned our attention to those other towers, the four so charming in design and in proportion, Renaissance in feeling, their simplicity seeming all the more graceful on account of the contrast with the other tower's over-ornamentation. "I wonder what the world would have done without the Giralda Tower in Seville? It has inspired many of the most beautiful towers in the world. It helped to inspire McKim, Mead and White when they built the Madison Square Tower, and the Madison Square Tower might be described as a relative of our own Ferry Tower, which is decidedly one of the best pieces of architecture in San Francisco. And it's plain enough that these four towers and the Ferry Tower are related. The top of the four towers, by the way, has a history. It comes from the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates, the little temple in Athens that was built by one of the successful chorus-leaders in the compet.i.tive choral dances of the Greeks, who happened to be a man of wealth. Afterward, when a chorus-leader won a prize, which consisted of a tripod, it was shown to the people on that monument."

"Some critics," I said, "have complained of the coloring and the pattern on those towers."

"They can't justify themselves, however. Though this plaster looks like Travertine, it nevertheless remains plaster, and it lends itself to plastic decoration. The Greeks and the Romans often used plaster, and they did not hesitate to paint it whenever they chose. Kelham's four towers have been criticised on account of their plastic design, which has a good deal of pink in it. But that design provides one of the strongest color notes in the whole Exposition, a delightful note, too.

It happens that makers of wallpaper have had the good sense to use a design somewhat similar. But this fact does not make the design any the less attractive or serviceable."