L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2015 www.italoamericano.com L'Italo-Americano 5 The Italian Pavilion at the Panama Pacific International Exhibition 2 0 1 5 m a r k s t h e 1 0 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y o f t h e P a n a m a Pacific International Exposition (PPIE). T h e P P I E o p e n e d o n February 20, 1915 and contin- ued to amaze visitors for over nine remarkable months until it closed on December 4, 1915. This spectacular exhibition was located on numerous acres of land in San Francisco's Marina District. I know this firsthand because it was the place my father visited on his first day in San Francisco having travelled from Lucca at the age of 16. Many of us know of the only r e m a i n i n g ( o n s i t e ) s t r u c t u r e from the Exposition quite well. That structure is the Palace of Fine Arts located at 3301 Lyon Street. T h e 1 9 1 5 S a n F r a n c i s c o Panama Pacific International Exposition was an international fair held to celebrate the open- i n g o f t h e P a n a m a C a n a l . P l a n n i n g b e g a n i n 1 9 0 4 a n d c o n t i n u e d t h r o u g h S a n Francisco's recovery from the 1906 earthquake and fire, so, for the city, the Exposition was also s e e n a s a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o demonstrate the city's recovery from the 1906 disaster. When the festival closed in December 1915, it had attracted almost n i n e t e e n m i l l i o n v i s i t o r s , 250,000 of those on the first few days. The official exposition "view book" describes the fair as: "A festival of all the nations com- memorating a world's event: The completion of the Panama Canal setting forth the world's progress in art, music, poetry, religion, philosophy, science, history, education, agriculture, mineralogy, mechanism, com- merce and transportation." Many countries were repre- sented at this massive exhibition and one of those exhibits was that of Italy. Historic accounts of the time describe the Italian galleries in great detail and in particular the works of Ettore Tito and of Antonio Mancini. Their art is said to have stood out among the painters in the Italian collection. In Gallery 21, Tito's work could be found in a group of five paintings and the landscapes, of which there were quite a few, were said to be all typically Italian in their color and "of a certain sweet- ness." Gallery 22 was described as dominated by three portraits by Mancini, "of unusual cleverness a n d v e r y f i n e p s y c h o l o g i c a l characterization." On the oppo- site wall, Arturo Noci had a very striking interior work. The east gallery, Gallery 23, was almost entirely given over to sculpture, with one exception w h i c h w a s a p a i n t i n g , " T h e Arch of Septimius Severus," by L u i g i B a z z a n i . G a l l e r y 2 4 housed two portraits by Enrico Lionne. Near the door on the opposite wall, Vincenzo Yrolli presented a street musician and h i s a u d i e n c e o n a c a n v a s described as "riotous with good color." Gallery 25 was the last of the Italian galleries. On its west wall was the work of a whole family of artists: Guglielmo Ciardi, the father; Beppe, the son; and Emma, the daughter. It was said the family's work was "excellent in every way." In addition, Gallery 25 exhibited a n u m b e r o f l a n d s c a p e s f r o m C i a r d i , G u i d o M a r u s s i g ' s "Walled City", Italico Brass' " P o n t o o n B r i d g e " , a n d Ferruccio Scattola's, "Venice". Upon leaving the Italian section, Guido Mentessi's large, imagi- native architectural study was much admired and was said to "crystallize the visitor's opinion o f t h e g e n e r a l e x c e l l e n c e o f Italy's contribution to the exhi- bition." The Italian buildings were considered a dignified example of pure Florentine Renaissance lines, with an occasional mod- ern note. They were designed as a group of buildings, repre- senting part of a small town with some of the finest bits of Italian Renaissance architecture. Art experts considered the archi- tects of these structures as suc- cessful in conveying the feeling of antiquity and stated, "There is a most impressive noble dig- n i t y i n t h e h a l l o f t h e m a i n building, where mural decora- tions of figural character add much to the sumptuousness of the general effect." The whole of the PPIE was intended to be temporary. The buildings were made of wood, plaster, and burlap to make them easy to demolish. The only part of the Exposition to survive was the Palace of Fine Arts which was rebuilt in the 1960s from more permanent materials. The 100th anniversary of the Panama Pacific Exposition will be celebrated through 2015 with various exhibits throughout the Bay Area. Detailed information about these events can be found a t t h e P P I E 1 0 0 w e b s i t e , http://www.ppie100.org. The Palace of Fine Arts will contin- ue to display the main exhibits through January 10, 2016. The Place of Fine Arts is located at 3 3 0 1 L y o n S t r e e t i n S a n Francisco's Marina District. Exhibit hours are daily from 9 : 0 0 a . m . t o 5 : 0 0 p . m . a n d admission is free. This once-in-a-lifetime expe- rience is a particularly special way to celebrate the contribu- tions of our Italian ancestors. M y f a t h e r s h a r e d m e m o r i e s from the weeks the vast exposi- t i o n w a s d e m o l i s h e d . H e r e c o u n t e d t h e m o m e n t t h e Italian tower fell to the ground. One particularly unfortunate recollection he shared was that of refusing to purchase a parcel o f e x p o s i t i o n l a n d o n c e i t became vacant and was put up for sale. The cost of this lot back in 1915 was $500. He shook his head and said, "I thought it was too expen- sive." I know the location of that parcel, and, as I walked by it recently, I was reminded it is now worth millions. CATHERINE ACCARDI The Panama Pacific International Exposition with the Italian Towers at the right. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress The Italian Towers at the end of Festival Hall. Photo courtesy of Catherine Accardi Drawing by Ettore Tito of Verdi's opera "Falstaff" – 1893

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