"Palace of Education"
"Pan.-Pac. Int. Exposition, San Francisco, No. 1" from the art print book Views Of The PPIE Exposition.
The Palace of Education is a good example of the exposition's stunning architecture. In The Journal of San Diego History Carlotta Falzone Robinson writes "Combining historical references in an 'eclectic, cosmopolitan' manner that evoked a collective memory, the Exposition’s designers created a vague, imaginary 'past.' They consciously 'aged' elements of the fair to evoke a feeling of historicism and permanence, inventing faux-travertine plaster which gave the buildings the appearance of the marble used in Roman art and allowed color to be applied to building surfaces. Despite the eclecticism of styles, 'the manner in which these forms are carried over from one palace to another, and the almost constant recurrence of some of them…blends them without jar or break.'
"By using familiar motifs rather than the avant-garde style of Art Nouveau, which was popular at European expositions, the architectural message could be understood by visitors from different classes and countries. A shared historical understanding meant that for the architects and visitors alike, Greek columns symbolized democracy, Roman triumphal arches recalled power, and the Renaissance courtyard design—with fountains and sculpture—evoked harmony and balance. Orientalist domes and exotic motifs responded to a romantic fascination with the East as 'other,' as well as reiterating San Francisco’s connection with Asia, and its anticipation of emerging as an international trade center with the opening of the Panama Canal."
(PPIE_001)
"Palace of Education"
"Pan.-Pac. Int. Exposition, San Francisco, No. 1" from the art print book Views Of The PPIE Exposition.
The Palace of Education is a good example of the exposition's stunning architecture. In The Journal of San Diego History Carlotta Falzone Robinson writes "Combining historical references in an 'eclectic, cosmopolitan' manner that evoked a collective memory, the Exposition’s designers created a vague, imaginary 'past.' They consciously 'aged' elements of the fair to evoke a feeling of historicism and permanence, inventing faux-travertine plaster which gave the buildings the appearance of the marble used in Roman art and allowed color to be applied to building surfaces. Despite the eclecticism of styles, 'the manner in which these forms are carried over from one palace to another, and the almost constant recurrence of some of them…blends them without jar or break.'
"By using familiar motifs rather than the avant-garde style of Art Nouveau, which was popular at European expositions, the architectural message could be understood by visitors from different classes and countries. A shared historical understanding meant that for the architects and visitors alike, Greek columns symbolized democracy, Roman triumphal arches recalled power, and the Renaissance courtyard design—with fountains and sculpture—evoked harmony and balance. Orientalist domes and exotic motifs responded to a romantic fascination with the East as 'other,' as well as reiterating San Francisco’s connection with Asia, and its anticipation of emerging as an international trade center with the opening of the Panama Canal."
(PPIE_001)