Leo Lentelli – Public Art and Architecture from Around the World

The Lost Art of Leo Lentelli

Posted by Cindy on May 9, 2016

May 092016

San Francisco Main Library
Now the Asian Art Museum

Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Public Library

Sometime between 1915 and 1917, Leo Lentelli was commissioned to design five large sculptures for the facade of the Main Public Library, now the Asian Art Museum.

In a March 1918 article titled “An Expression of Decorative Sculpture – Leo Lentelli,” published in The Architect and Engineer, Sadakichi Hartmann boldly stated that the five figures were “by far the most important work Lentelli has as yet attempted.” The sculptures, which represent Art, Literature, Philosophy, Science and Law, are 7-feet 8-inch high cement figures once set atop granite pedestals and originally sat above the library’s main entrance.

Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Public Library

Hartmann explained that “even the medium is new…(past Lentelli) sculpture was done in cement and Lentelli has stuck to it as his principal medium of expression. It is warmer in color, almost looks like granite when properly polished and gone over, is cast easily and less expensively and stands the inclemency’s of the climate – rain, wind and mist-as well as any other medium.”

Hartman went on to say that Lentelli’s sculptures are an “effective juxtaposition of deep lines and massive forms, of black accents and large, quiet planes.” leaving the object free of what Hartmann described as “useless conventional details. ” Because of this contrast Hartmann pointed out that “Lentelli’s works are not made for indoors. They are constructed to be seen in the open, in sunlight, or on gray days, and generally from a considerable distance and particular view points.”

The sculptures were removed when the building was remodeled into the Asian Art museum and sold to a private collector by the City of San Francisco.

Lentelli was born in Bologna and began his career in New York, arriving in San Francisco to participate in the Pan Pacific International Exposition in 1915. He sculpted the Genii on Columns for the Court of the Universe, the columns of Earth and Air for the Court of the Ages and the figure of Aspiration for the main portal of the Palace of Fine Arts. He received numerous commissions for public sculpture throughout the United States including the sculptures of Mining and Agriculture for the Sullivan Gate of the Denver City Park, the sculptures for the facade of the Loew’s Theatre in St. Louis and the statue of Cardinal James Gibbons in Meridian Hill, Washington D.C.. San Franciscan’s can find his work on the entry way to the Hunter Dunlin Building, as well as the design of the light stanchions that make up the Path of Gold on Market Street.

Lentelli died in Rome in 1962.

Original clay sculpture. Source- Lentelli Papers Smithsonian Archives of American Art

Original clay sculptures. Source- Lentelli Papers – Smithsonian Archives of American Art

In working with cast stone, first a clay model is made, then a mold is made from the clay model. Finally a cementious material is poured into the model to create the final piece.

I would like to thank Piraneseum for their help on this article.

Mission Branch Library and Leo Lentelli

Posted by Cindy on November 25, 2014

Nov 252014

Mission Branch Library
24th Between Bartlett and Orange Alley
Mission District

Leo Lentelli was one of San Francisco’s more prolific and well known sculptors during his time. Sadly very little of his work survives inside of the city. There is a beautiful piece at the Hunter Dunlin building downtown, and this sculpture over the original entry door on 24th Street of the Mission Branch Library.

Lentelli, an immigrant from Italy spent 1914-1918 in San Francisco. During that time he did a series of equestrian statues that were part of the Court of the Universe and his sculptures of Water Sprites for the Court of Abundance for the Pan Pacific Exposition

Lentelli created “Five Symbolic Figures,” a series of five statues representing Art, Literature, Philosophy, Science and Law, that were placed between the pillars above the entrance to the Old Main Library at Larkin Street. These works, made of cast stone were installed in 1918, the year after the Library opened, and were not intended to be permanent. Sadakichi Hartmann, writing for the Architecture and Engineer in 1918, praised these works for “their sturdiness of conception and attitude, their decorative expression, and a certain swing and freedom of handling.” To my horror upon learning this, and to the detriment of all, the Asian Art Museum, when taking over and renovating the Library, found that these works had deteriorated so much that no attempt was made to retain or restore them.

From the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection SFPL

The Mission Branch Library is part of the group of libraries built in San Francisco with William Carnegie monies, this particular building was built under the design guidelines of the Carnegie Standards.

Leo Lentelli and his San Francisco Work

Posted by Cindy on July 1, 2013

Jul 012013

Hunter Dunlin Building
111 Sutter Street
Financial District

The Hunter Dunlin Building is one of San Francisco’s gems. Restored in the late 1990’s to its former glory, it has ornamentation throughout its lobby and everywhere you look on the exterior.

There are six plaques on the Northern and Eastern facades called The Seasons. They are by Leo Lentelli. They are allegorical representations of the seasons, and while there are six plaques there are only two different sculptures.

Leo Lentelli is best known in San Francisco for designing the tops of the street lights on Market known as the Path of Gold.

Lentelli was an Italian sculptor who immigrated to the United States. During his 52 years in the United States he created works throughout the country, notably in New York and San Francisco. He also taught sculpture.

Water Sprites at Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco – Courtesy of the San Francisco Public Library

Born in Bologna, Italy, Leo Lentelli studied in Bologna and Rome and worked as a sculptor in Italy. He immigrated to the United States in 1903 at the age of 24. In 1911 he entered the Architectural League exhibition and won the Avery Prize. The following year he became a naturalized citizen of the United States.Chosen to provide sculptural ornament for the Panama-Pacific Exposition, Lentelli moved to San Francisco in 1914. He collaborated with Frederick George Richard Roth and Stirling Calder (Alexander Calder’s Father). Calder has been credited with aiding Lentelli in developing his own style An example can be seen in his Water Sprites.

He also participated as a sculptor in the city’s artistic renewal, which took place after the 1906 earthquake and fire. While in San Francisco he taught at the California School of Fine Arts. Significant works from this period include the Five Symbolic Figures at the Old Main Library elevated above the street entrance of the Larkin Street entrance.(no longer available) Still a resident of San Francisco, he made the ornament for the Orpheum Theater, then known as the Historic American Theater. (no longer available)

Eventually Lentelli moved back to New York City and began teaching at the Art Students League. Lentelli’s bas-reliefs on the International Building at Rockefeller Center are considered among his most important works.

Lentelli retired to Italy and died on December 31, 1961 in Rome.

At the entrance to the Hunter Dunlin Building is this sculpture by Leo Lentelli titled Mercury.

The San Francisco Public Library Blog has some wonderful photographs of Lentelli’s work in San Francisco that is no longer around.

The Hunter Dunlin Building in the French Romanesque Style

Posted by Cindy on February 5, 2013

Feb 052013

111 Sutter Street
The Financial District

111 Sutter Street, or the Hunter Dulin Building, is a terra-cotta clad building modeled on a French château. This 22-story French Romanesque building is topped with a 38-foot high mansard roof sporting both dormers and gables.

The building was designed by New York architecture firm Shultze and Weaver for Los Angeles brokerage house Hunter Dulin. When it was built in 1927, it was the fourth-highest building in San Francisco. Shultze and Weaver were known for such American icons as the Waldorf-Astoria in New York, the Biltmore in Los Angeles and the Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida. It is rumored that 111 Sutter Street cost well in excess of one million dollars.

The main office shaft of 111 Sutter is clad in a finely glazed terra cotta. It’s Romanesque-ness is emphasized with such features as the grand entryway arches and the vaulted lobby. The French portion is demonstrated by the château ornamentation and the set back at the top of this shaft that is crowned with a mansard roof.

The building is a steel-frame construction built on a reinforced concrete sheet piling system. To speed up the construction process, the concrete foundation was laid in a 44-hour continuous pour.

Mercury by Leo Lentelli (1879—1961)

The National Broadcast Company (NBC) used 111 Sutter for their West Coast headquarters from 1927 to 1942. According to Dashiell Hammett scholars, 111 Sutter also housed the fictional offices of Sam Spade.

During the 1970s, San Francisco passed building codes requiring that, for earthquake purposes, all exterior ornamentation must be attached securely to the building. During this time, ornamentation throughout the city was simply removed as a more cost-efficient way of complying with the new laws. Most likely, this was when 20 copper spires that topped the roof of 111 Sutter were removed.

The building underwent a $23 million restoration between 1999 and 2001. At this time the building was seismically upgraded, and modern telecommunications systems were added. What the casual visitor will notice, however, is the restoration of the marble entrance and the elevator lobby. The restoration brought an old-time glamour back to the building. Even the bathrooms were given classic wood doors and antique tile walls. At the time, replacing the copper spires atop the building proved cost prohibitive. However, they were eventually restored in 2005-at an additional cost of $450,000, giving this beauty the crown she so deserved.

Added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 17, 1997, 111 Sutter stands as a majestic remembrance of an unusual and yet elegant architectural style.

Path of Gold Street Lamps

Posted by Cindy on March 13, 2001

Mar 132001

Market Street

The Ferry Building to Castro Street

Known as the Path of Gold due to their golden hue which emanates from yellow sodium vapor lamps the 33-foot high lampposts along Market Street were designated historic landmarks in 1991.

The 327 Path of Gold standards are a legacy from the City Beautiful movement of the early 20th century, which also gave San Francisco the Civic Center. Their distinctive color and pattern of light identify Market Street from distant viewpoints.
The Winning of the West bases by sculptor Arthur Putnam feature three bands of historical subjects: covered wagons, mountain lions, and alternating prospectors and Indians.

Willis Polk designed the base and pole in 1908 for United Railways’ trolley poles with street lights. The City required the company to provide highly ornamental poles, with lamps and electricity, as the price of permitting the much opposed overhead trolley wires.

The tops were designed in 1916 by sculptor Leo Lentelli and engineer Walter D’Arcy Ryan, whose lighting designs for the Panama Pacific International Exposition of 1915 had inspired emulation on the City’s principal thoroughfare.

This project was linked to graft payments to Mayor Schmitz, political boss Abe Ruef, and seventeen of the eighteen members of the Board of Supervisors.

A timeline to help simplify things:

1916: The original installation, from the Ferry Building to Seventh Street, was a cooperative effort by private companies including Pacific Gas & Electric. To service the tall poles, PG&E invented an ancestor to the cherry picker.

1920s: Path of Gold tops were added to the Winning of the West bases from Seventh Street to Valencia Street.

1972: As a component of the Market Street Beautification program which followed BART construction, all the poles and ornaments were replaced with replicas and fitted with new high pressure sodium vapor lamps.

1980s: The original Path of Gold standards were used to extend the system out Market Street to just beyond Castro.

Lentelli was born in Bologna, Italy. He studied in both Bologna and Rome and worked as a sculptor in Italy. Immigrating to the United States in 1903 at the age of 24, Lentelli initially assisted in the studios of several established sculptors. In 1911 he entered the Architectural League exhibition and won the Avery Prize. The following year he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Chosen to provide sculptural ornament for the Panama-Pacific Exposition, Lentelli moved to San Francisco in 1914.