"Spanish Life" Mural

A caption to this photo reads: "John Moxom, WPA Federal Art Project artist, is shown at work on the charcoal sketch for his mural, 'Spanish Life,' which will be placed in the Hillsborough Distriet School." According to Moxom, it was sixty feet wide, painted directly on the wall in oil paint; its subject was "early Spanish explorers in California. Native arts, Indian women weaving" (McChesney). The mural's current status is unknown, although the artist jokingly hoped "they've darkened considerably."

About the Artist

John (“Jack”) Swanston Moxom was born in Calgary, Alberta, immigrating with his family to San Francisco in 1925. He lived in the Bay Area the rest of his life. Moxom studied at the California School of Fine Art, then received his first commission through the FAP for a sculpture at the Sarah B. Cooper Memorial, Golden Gate Park. His subject matter of a young girl with a cat and a squirrel at her feet seemed appropriate to honor the educational reformer. Moxom later recalled, however, that his inexperience led him to choose a variety of sandstone that was beautifully flesh-colored but “darkened to a bloody red when the water hit it” (McChesney). Moxom’s main artistic contributions to the FAP took the form of murals at what was then called the San Francisco Teachers College (now SF State). Over two years, he created an estimated 10-15 separate murals ranging from a 12’ x 9’ work for a childrens’ library, to various works integrated into a building’s architecture (“Frederic Burk”). Eventually the murals were painted over, until a 2015 restoration project converted 55 Laguna Street into affordable senior housing for the LGBTQ+ community. Moxom also worked at the Hillsborough District School to create a 60 ft. painted mural for its auditorium, depicting the conquistador Juan Bautista De Anza encountering a variety of Native Arts (McChesney; SF Art Ass’n). In later years Moxom studied with the Italian painter Giorgio de Chirico, but he always credited the FAP’s support for young artists: “...some place for a studio, some facilities to make a beginning, some nucleus would permit the painter to live on a restricted budget....It's deadly, competition. Partly because most of us would always lose and those who win might not be the best ones. I mean, God himself couldn't tell what the results are going to be before we've begun” (McChesney). 2 works at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. 1 work at Detroit Museum of Art. 1 work at the Annex Galleries. 1 work at National Gallery of Art. 3 images at GSA.

Works  Consulted: Mary Fuller McChesney, “Oral History Interview with Hebe Daum Stackpole and Jack Moxom,” 9 Jan. 1965, Archives of American Art New Deal and the Arts Project Link; San Francisco Art Association Bulletin 5.9 (April 1939): 2 Link; Shelley Caltagirone, Historic Preservation Commission Review of 55 Laguna Street 10 Dec. 2015 Link; “Frederic Burk School Notes,” Golden Gator 31 Mar. 1936: 4 Link

Unknown

"Design for School Mural," San Francisco News 1 April 1939: 8

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