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Diego Rivera Murals: Tips to Find His Three Frescos in San Francisco
by Jill Loeffler •
Updated: February 2, 2024
One of the best things about San Francisco is the hidden gems you can find throughout the city. My favorites are the colorful and controversial Diego Rivera murals.
SF is home to three of his masterpieces including the first one he finished in the United States. Even though they are often referred to as murals, they are actually frescos.
The difference is that frescos take a special skill set and are difficult to create, but the vibrancy of their colors lasts forever.
Unfortunately, all three pieces are behind locked doors as of mid-2024.
All three are closed for different reasons.
You can read about each one below and I'll keep this page updates as they eventually start to open for public viewing again.
Disclaimer: I receive a small commission from some of the links on this page.
Who is Diego Rivera?
Diego Rivera (1886 - 1957) was a controversial, yet talented artist from Mexico. He was passionate about art, politics and love affairs.
His commitment to the Communist party brought quite a bit of attention to him and his highly detailed works of art.
As a young artist, Rivera spend several years in Paris hanging out with other talented painters such as Pablo Picasso.
He was an artist all of his life, but his time in Paris was instrumental to the direction of his famous frescos in the US and Mexico.
Pan American Unity
The most magnificent Diego Rivera mural in San Francisco is the piece entitled the Pan American Unity. This enormous work of art stands 22 feet tall and is 75 feet wide. It is made up of 10 panels and is the largest significant piece of work he did.
It is also the last official fresco he created in the US.
This piece is currently in storage until around 2027.
City College, it's home for many years, is planning to build a new building to showcase this work better. They moved it into storage on January 21, 2024 after it spent a couple of years at the SF Museum of Modern Art.
Their best estimate is that the new building will open sometime in 2027.
Brief History of the Pan American Unity
Rivera was commissioned to complete this one during the Golden Gate International Expo on Treasure Island (less than a mile east of San Francisco). He arrived and started work on it in June 1940.
Even though the Expo closed in September 1940, he continued his work and completed it in December of that year.
At that time, they reopened the doors so everyone could look at the fresco. Shortly thereafter, it was put in crates where it stayed for 19 years. In 1961, the Diego Rivera Theater was built specifically to house it.
However, due to the inability to see the entire fresco in this theater, a new building is currently in the works.
Each of the 10 panels of The Pan American Unity tells a different story, but they all fit together perfectly. The stories in this piece include everything from Pre-Columbian Mexico to the players in WWII (which was in progress at the time).
Here are just a few pictures of the different sections of this mural.
You will see quite a few things going on in this panel including a view from above of Treasure Island, which is where this mural was created.Location & When to Visit
This one is currently in storage until around 2027. It was on display at the SF Museum of Modern Art, but their contract ended on January 21, 2024.
It's currently in storage until City College completes a new building that will house this piece of work. Their current estimated opening date is 2027.
Allegory of California
The Allegory of California is the first fresco Rivera finished in the US. He completed this piece in 1931.
You will find it adorning the grand stairwell in The City Club in downtown San Francisco.
The main female figure is Calafia, the Spirit of California. The piece depicts the state of California at the time of its completion. It also includes well-known local and regional figures of the time.
Here is a close up of the right hand of Calafia. It gives you a closer look at the details of this piece. She is holding 'above ground treasures' found throughout the state at the time.
It's hard to catch in one picture, but this is an extension of the fresco onto the ceiling above the staircase.
Location & When to Visit
This mural is located at 155 Sansome Street in downtown SF. However, right now, it's for members only.
They used to allow anyone to walk up and ask to see the mural on their own, but this stopped a couple of years ago.
They also used to offer a public tour through the SFCityGuides once a month, but that is temporarily on pause.
I'll update you if/when it's open again to the public.
The Making of a Fresco Showing the Building of a City
NOTE: The San Francisco Art Institute where this one is located closed it's doors in the Summer of 2022. This means access to this piece will not be available until they find a buyer or someone decides to reopen this gallery. I'll post updates here as I learn more.
This is the second Diego Rivera mural completed in the US. He completed this fresco in 1931.
This SF mural sits in the Diego Rivera Gallery inside the San Francisco Art Institute near Fisherman's Wharf, Russian Hill and North Beach.
This one is considered a fresco within a fresco. It shows the painters in action as they build the fresco. You can see all of the artists, along with their scaffolding, layered on top of the masterpiece they are completing.
This one also includes the backside of Diego Rivera as he watches the artists work on the fresco below.
Location & When to Visit
This one is also open to the public every day between 9am and 7pm. The San Francisco Art Institute is at 800 Chestnut Street (between Leavenworth and Jones).
Enter through the doorway shown in the picture below and take an immediate left. Walk to the end and take an immediate right.
The Diego Rivera Gallery will be the first door on your left.
How to Get Here
You can easily walk from either Fisherman's Wharf or North Beach. It's also just a few blocks from the bottom of Lombard Street, the famous crooked street.
- From Union Square, you can take the 30 Stockton bus or the Powell Mason Cable Car. Exit both of them at the Columbus Avenue and Chestnut Street stop. Head across the street and up the hill one and a half blocks to find the entrance.
Comments? Questions? Suggestions?
I would love for you to join me in my private Facebook group!
It's a great place to interact with me and others who know the area well.
You can ask questions, get advice for your upcoming stay, and then share your photos and advice with others when you return home. It's a great community and the fastest way to get answers to those nagging questions about your visit!
