Coit Tower

The coit memorial tower was erected in 1933. The decoration of the interior in Fresco was authorized as a public works of art project and undertaken by the artists of san fransisco and completed in 1934.

It is a matter of historical record that the Coit Tower art project was the prototype for the decade of the New Deal art that followed, 1933-43, halted finally by World War II. Utilizing carefully selected artistic talent, the project provided an iconography of the "American Scene" for the largest of all the art programs at that time, the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project (WPA-FAP) which followed a year after the PWAP.

The themes of agriculture, education, urban and rural life, social protest, and New Deal Idealism established at Coit Tower were to become the subsequent subjects of those same artists and of others who took up paintbrushes and sculptors' tools under further government-sponsored art programs throughout the nation.

Visiting on a weekday, the tower is pleasantly uncrowded. Walking around the inside base of the tower there is a large mural that is very interesting to look at (especially if you look closely for small details like the man being mugged in the middle of the street without anyone noticing -- or caring).

The top of the tower gives a 360 degree view of the city including impressive views of fisherman's warf, alcatraz, chinatown and the financial district. It would be best to go later in your trip, as it is more enjoyable if you've already been to the places you're now seeing from this unique vantage point. The windows looking out can get quite dirty (mostly fingerprints), so if you're looking to take photos, you may want to have a small cloth handy.