Warren Heckrotte's Collection of Rare West Coast Maps

James Imray (1803-1870) 

West Cost of North America from San Blas to San Francisco

London: 1883

Featuring a new special exhibition to the Gallery parts of the collection of Warren Heckrotte. Visit the Gallery to view 14 of Heckrotte's coveted rare maps of the West Cost. This collection features exquisite maps of Gold Rush Era Oregon, California, Texas and Mexico.

San Francisco local Warren Heckrotte was a rare books and maps buyer who began building his collection in the 1960’s, “making his first purchase, of three “decorative” maps, in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1963” while working in Geneva as a physicist at the Lawrence Livermore Labratory where he served as representative of the Atomic Energy Commission. This first maps purchase sparked Mr. Heckrotte’s passion for maps and his desire to continue to grow his academic knowledge of antique maps. He began, as many map collectors do, with a study of R.V. Tooley’s Maps and Map-Makers. As his collection grew so did his knowledge and self academic understanding of maps, He edited and contributed to California 49: Forty-nine Maps of California from the 16th Century to the Present, published in San Francisco in 1999.

 B.F. Butler 

Map of the Gold Region California

San Francisco: 1851

A.D Bache (1806-1867)

Entrance to San Francisco Bay California

From: A trigonometrical Survey

Washington: U.S. Coastal Survey: 1859

For more information or to make an appointment Please call 415-788-5115, Arader Galleries 432 Jackson Street, San Francisco, Ca 94111.

Extrodinary Panoramic Views of Old San Francisco

This week Arader Galleries would like to share our Outstanding views of our wonderful city, the City of San Francisco.  Read further to view the progression of the San Francisco urban landscape we enjoy today. 

Charles Méryon (1821-1868)

Panoramic View of San Francisco at the Height of the Gold Rush

New York: 1855

This view of San Francisco depicts the city after it had received its charter from the new stat legislature in 1851, after expansion brought on by the discovery of gold in the Sierra Nevadas in 1848. The population of the city, on y 200 in 1846, and by then end of 1852 grew to 42,000. This meteoric expansion can be traced in this view, in which the vast expanse of the city is emphasized by the panoramic format. 

Daniel H. Burnham (1846-1912) and Edward H. Bennett (1874-1952)

Panorama of the City from Twin Peaks

From: Report on a Plan for San Francisco

San Francisco: 1908

lithograph

Architect and Urban designers Burnham and Bennett were hired to help re-design San Francisco in 1904, they later planned the city-scape of Chicago in 1909. They chose Twin Peaks as the best vantage point to study the layout of the City to create a new city plan. The City was to be organized by functional districts, commercial, financial, residential, entertainment, and industrial areas, separated but conveniently laid out. The view of the City from Twin Peaks inspired Burnham and Bennett’s plans to elevate and urbanize San Francisco.

Eadweard Muybridge (English-born, American photographer, 1830-1904)

“Panorama of San Francisco”
San Francisco: 1877
Albumen prints from glass negatives
11-panel photograph panorama
13” x 88” framed
Provenance: Collection of Daniel G. Volkmann, Jr.

Eadweard Muybridge was a brilliant, eccentric photographer, who gained worldwide fame photographing animal and human movement imperceptible to the human eye. Muybridge’s breathtaking 360-degree panorama from California Street hill, taken, it is believed by scholars, between May 23 and June 23 1877 (due to examination of the shadows), and probably on Monday (people are doing their wash). This image is Muybridge’s most famous single work, providing not only one of the best views of the bustling metropolis, but also a wealth of entertainment upon

close examination. This picture tells many stories. Visible in striking detail are the mansions of the rich and the dwellings of the poor, the churches, hotels, banks, and other features. Muybridge also

produced a mammoth plate panorama of San Francisco, which is excessively rare. The present, smaller version was issued folding, into cloth covers.

For gallery inquiries and purchases please contact us at (415) 788-5115, or visit Arader Galleries 432 Jackson Street, San Francisco, Ca 94111.

Arader Galleries Presents: the Shaping of San Francisco

W. Vallace Gray and Charles B. Gifford
"Bird's Eye View of the City and County of San Francisco, 1868"
San Francisco: 1868-69
Hand-tinted lithograph

Please join Arader Galleries for a very special evening with Mr. Charles Fracchia

Arader Galleries is pleased to be hosting Mr. Charles Fracchia for the final segment of his 3-Part Lecture Series "The Shaping of San Francisco" on the evening of Tuesday, January 22 at 6:15 pm where he will be presenting Part 3:

The Shaping of San Francisco.

Part 1: The Spanish Mexican Period (September 20th)

Part 2: The Gold Rush (October 17th)

Part 3: The Silver Age (January 22nd)

Charles Fracchia is the Founder and President of The San Francisco Historical Society and is passionate about San Francisco's extraordinary history.

Arader Galleries in Jackson Square's historic district, is the perfect backdrop to host this lecture, as many of the Gold Rush-era commercial buildings in the Jackson Square area managed to escape the 1906 earthquake. The lectures will take place at our beautiful building at 432 Jackson Street.

This lecture is free to attend. Please RSVP by calling the gallery at (415) 788-5115, availability is limited!

We will look forward to seeing you!

The Arader Galleries Team

Blueprints of a Landmark

The Golden Gate Bridge is one of the most recognizable symbols of the city of San Francisco and arguably one of the most beautiful bridges in the world. The vermillion color was chosen to complement its natural surroundings and stand out to sailors in the distance. The long, gradual cords lend an elegant look to the bridge and illumination from the base highlights the length. It marks the separation of the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean and connects the northern tip of the peninsula to Marin county.

In the mid 1920's, Joseph Strauss had a plan to make travel from the Northern counties to the peninsula more efficient than the previous ferry systems had. He had fought for support for over a decade before receiving over 30 million dollars worth of bonds to begin construction. Many designs were considered before the final blueprints were decided on. Strauss remained the chief engineer to the project but relied heavily on three main contributors. Leon Moisseiff, designer of New York's Manhattan Bridge, came up with the cable suspension design. Architect Irving Morrow decided the bridge towers, lighting, decoration, and eventually was convinced by San Francisco residents to paint the bridge the vibrant orange it is today. Charles Alton Ellis deserves credit for most of the engineering decisions. In 1937, the bridge was completed. It set the record for largest main bridge span in the world.

The Golden Gate Bridge was, and is, a beautiful piece of architecture and of the Bay Area. Strauss, Moisseiff, Morrow, and Ellis along with hundreds of other men were responsible for turning this vision into reality. These visions can be viewed through the blueprints they created. Here, you can see the raw architectural plans that make up the bridge.

Here at Arader, we have several blueprints of various structures of the bridge. If you have further inquiries about the Golden Gate Bridge Blueprints, please feel free to contact Arader Galleries for more information.

Early Streetcar Scene of San Francisco

Eduard Hildebrandt (1818 - 1869)
San Francisco Streetcars
c.1864
Paper size: 14 1/2 x 10 1/2 inches; 16” x 21” framed
Watercolor on Whatman paper
Signed lower right: E. Hildebrandt
Inscribed lower left: San Francisco

This lovely street scene depicts a view of San Francisco up California Street past Montgomery Street. There is a wonderful sense of one-point perspective in the picture plane with notable local landmarks on either side of the prominently featured road: the Parrott Building and St. Mary's are seen off to the right, to the left is Grace Church, and in the background is Nob Hill. A steam-powered trolley car divides the foreground from the background while a scene of barrels being unloaded exists in along the picture’s center.

Born in Danzig in 1818, Edward Hildebrandt came from a family of artists, his brother being the notable marine painter Trite Hildebrandt (1819 - 1855). An influential time in his career spanned the dates 1860 - 1862 when he went on a grand world tour. His stops included the Middle East, India, Singapore, Siam (Thailand), Macao, Hong Kong, China, The Philippines, Japan and the United States. Hildebrandt worked primarily with watercolors to document the sites that he saw which were then published in Berlin as chromolithographs in 1864. Hildebrandt’s original watercolors were exhibited twice in the later years of his life: in London in 1866 and at an exhibition at the Crystal Palace in 1868, just a year prior to his death in Berlin. For more information on this fascinating watercolor, please call Arader Galleries at 415.788.5115, or visit our San Francisco location at 435 Jackston Street.

Arader Galleries is also pleased to present our new catalog, California, celebrating the rich history of Northern California, from the time of exploration, to the advances in photography that captured the beauty of the area, and including the birds and mammals that are native to Northern Calfornia. Please contact contact Arader Galleries San Francisco location to request a copy.

Helios: Eadweard Muybridge in a Time of Change

Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904) was a brilliant, eccentric photographer, who gained worldwide fame photographing animal and human movement imperceptible to the human eye. A retrospective of Muybridge’s work currently on view at the SFMOMA is the first to examine the full scope of Muybridge's vision and his pivotal role in the creative transformation of 19th-century culture. The British-born Muybridge began his artistic career in the 1860s in California — then as now a fertile ground for innovation — and his images vividly capture a rapidly changing West. Bringing together hundreds of photographs and other objects made between 1858 and 1893, the exhibition offers a panoramic view of Muybridge's work within the landscape of his times.

Arader Galleries also has a fine collection of Muybridge’s photographs: the top image is a series of a bird in motion from his famous Animal Locomotion series, the bottom is a detail of a panorama of San Francisco dated 1877. Please contact Arader Galleries with any questions about these fascinating and historically important photographs.

Arader Galleries presents a syndication of John Gould's "A Monograph of the Trochilidae - the Hummingbirds"

Topaza Pella -

Crimson Topaz

Cometes Sparganurus - The Sapphro Comet

Arader Galleries is pleased to announce a syndicated distribution of authentic hand-colored lithographs from John Gould's
most famous work: A Monograph of the Trochilidae - the Hummingbirds. These beloved images were published between
1849 and 1881, based on specimens in Gould's own magnificent collection and from his travels.

These engravings are renowned for their use of mineral inks that duplicate the natural iridescence that makes these birds so special. This is the finest natural history coloring of all time, nothing else before or since compares. These 418 beautiful, hand colored lithographs in superb condition will be distributed at 1:00 pm on March 12, 2011 at our gallery in New York
at 1016 Madison Avenue.

A syndication is a wonderful opportunity to build or add to a collection at tremendously discounted price. 83 shares consisting of five lithographs are available at $4,800, or $960 each. The order of selection will be determined in
three rounds by a random lottery.

For more information about the John Gould hummingbird syndication,
please contact our San Francisco gallery at (415) 788-5115.

San Francisco Decorator Showcase

The 2010 San Francisco Decorator Showcase is being held in a magnificent 1929 French Normandy mansion at 3450 Washington Street (between Walnut and Laurel) in Presidio Heights .

Open from May 1st to 31st, the proceeds from visitors and the silent auction benefit the financial aid program at San Francisco University High School.

More than twenty San Francisco designers were chosen to decorate the rooms of this fabulous house, each with their distinctive flair and style. From the rich horologists room to the playful au pair room, and every floor in between, the designers embellished this home to perfection.

"Wild About Parrots"

Maya
Photo courtesy of
Drew Altizer Photography

Arader Galleries, San Francisco, had the pleasure of hosting the San Francisco Zoological Society’s Benefactor party in our galleries on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010. The lively event was co-hosted by Barnaby and Martha Conrad and MacGregor and Mary Read.

The event comes days before the highly anticipated annual ZooFest, the San Francisco Zoological Society’s most celebrated fundraiser, held on April 30th, 2010 at the zoo. This year, the ZooFest's theme is “Wild About Parrots” and focuses on South American parrots whose habitats and lives are continually destroyed through illegal trafficking and deforestation.

A portion of the money raised by ZooFest will go towards the restoration of the San Francisco Zoo’s South American Tropical Forest Aviary and parrot habitat. A moving speech delivered by Executive Director and President of the San Francisco Zoo, Tanya Peterson, highlighted the importance of preserving the lives and habitats of these beautiful birds.

Along with the many benefactors of the San Francisco Zoo, Mark Bittner, author of The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill attended the party and signed copies of his book. Live owls, a chatty parrot and a peregrine falcon, presented by handlers from San Francisco Zoo, also greeted attendees and served as a reminder of the great impact the Zoological Society has on these animals.

The event at Arader Galleries provided the perfect platform for the celebration of ZooFest and the many outstanding accomplishments made by the supporters of the San Francisco Zoo for the care and conservation of animals.

"Pacific Coast Scenes" by Jorgensen

Christian A. Jorgensen (1860-1935)
“Pacific Coast Scenes”
Supplement to the Christmas edition of The Wasp
San Francisco: 1884, Bosqui Eng. & Print Co.
Lithograph
35” x 43” framed

Born in Oslo, Norway, Jorgensen moved to San Francisco with his mother in 1870. He showed artist promise at an early age, and was among the first students to enroll in the School of Design when it opened in 1874. While at art school Jorgensen was greatly influenced by his instructor and artist Virgil Williams, whom was both a mentor and father figure to Jorgensen. Jorgensen later became an instructor at the School of Design and served as assistant director from 1881-1883. He then established a studio at 131 Post Street in San Francisco, and by the mid 1880s had a successful career as a landscape painter. He was also a member of the Bohemian Club from 1899-1904.

For five years, Jorgensen and his wife traveled by horse and buggy to the sites of the 21 California missions, producing watercolor studies of the missions and a complete set of oils. A lithograph collage of these views, “Pacific Coast Scenes,” was published as a supplement to The Wasp in 1884. Included were views of San Francisco, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Lake Merritt (Oakland), Lake Lagunitas, Guerneville, Lakeport and the Hetch Hetchy Valley. The Wasp was a late 19th century weekly satire newspaper founded by Francis Korbel. It was unique for its production of color lithograph prints, a process Korbel had mastered in his previous business of manufacturing cigar box labels.

In 1899, Jorgensen pitched a tent in Yosemite and after several months obtained a permit to build a studio home there. He would continue painting there for the next 19 years during the warmer months (his Yosemite home is now the headquarters for the Government Rangers). In 1905 he built a boulder home in Carmel (now the site of the Hotel La Playa) where he and his wife Angela lived for a few years, though most of his time was spent at his family home in Piedmont. Jorgensen enjoyed a long career and continued painting until his death in 1935. Jorgensen’s work is held in the collections of the Yosemite Museum and the Bohemian Club.

For more information, please contact Arader Galleries at 415.788.5115.

An Iconic Panorama View of San Francisco by Eadweard Muybridge

Eadweard Muybridge (English-born, American photographer, 1830-1904)
“Panorama of San Francisco”
San Francisco: 1877
Albumen prints from glass negatives 11-panel photograph panorama
13” x 88” framed (shown here photographed in 6 sections)

The albumen print, also called albumen silver print, was invented in 1850 by Louis Désiré Blanquart-Evrard, and was the first commercially exploitable method of producing a photographic print on a paper base from a negative. It used the albumen found in egg whites to bind the photographic chemicals to the paper and became the dominant form of photographic positives from 1855 to the turn of the century, with a peak in 1860-90.

Eadweard Muybridge was a brilliant, eccentric photographer, who gained worldwide fame photographing animal and human movement imperceptible to the human eye.

Muybridge’s given name was Edward James Muggeridge, and he was born at Kingston upon Thames in England. In 1855 Muybridge moved to San Francisco, starting his career as a publisher’s agent and bookseller. He left San Francisco at the end of the 1850s, after receiving severe injuries from a stagecoach accident, and returned to England. He returned to San Francisco, and found rapid success as a photographer focusing on landscape and architectural subjects. At this time he also started using the last name “Muybridge.” His photographs were sold by various photographic entrepreneurs on Montgomery Street, San Francisco's main commercial street at that time.
Muybridge’s reputation as a photographer continued to grow with his photographs focusing on Yosemite and San Francisco. He spent many years working traveling as a successful photographer. In 1868, Muybridge was commissioned to photograph the recent territory of Alaska on a US Army expedition, and in 1871 was selected as the photographer for the High Sierra survey. In 1871 he also married Flora Stone.

In 1872, Leland Stanford, a businessman, race-horse owner and former California governor, had taken a position on a popularly-debated question of the day: whether all four of a horse's hooves left the ground at the same time during a gallop. Stanford sided with this assertion that they did, called "unsupported transit", and decided to find scientific proof to back his theory. Stanford hired Muybridge to settle the issue. To prove Stanford's claim, Muybridge developed a scheme for instantaneous motion picture capture along with the chief engineer for the Southern Pacific Railroad, John D. Isaacs. In 1878, Muybridge successfully photographed a horse in fast motion to prove Stanford’s claim using a series of 24 cameras. This series of photographs, taken at what is now Stanford University, is now called The Horse in Motion, and is one of the most popular images in history.

While working on Stanford’s project in 1874, Muybridge discovered that his wife had a lover, a Major Harry Larkyns. On October 17, 1874, he sought out Larkyns; said, "Good evening, Major, my name is Muybridge and here is the answer to the letter you sent my wife,” and fatally shoot the major. Muybridge believed Larkyns to be his son's true father, although, as an adult, he bore a remarkable resemblance to Muybridge. He was put on trial for murder, his defense fees paid by Stanford, but was acquitted as a "justifiable homicide." An interesting aspect of Muybridge's defense was a plea of insanity due to a head injury Muybridge sustained following his stagecoach accident in the 1850s. Friends testified that the accident dramatically changed Muybridge's personality from genial and pleasant to unstable and erratic.

Hoping to capitalize upon the considerable public attention his photographs drew, Muybridge invented the Zoopraxiscope, which projected the images so the public could see realistic motion. The system was, in many ways, a precursor to the development of the motion picture film. His presentations of his photographs using the Zoopraxiscope in Europe and the United States were widely acclaimed by both the public and specialist audiences of scientists and artists.

Muybridge’s breathtaking 360-degree panorama from California Street hill, taken, it is believed by scholars, between May 23 and June 23 1877 (due to examination of the shadows), and probably on Monday (people are doing their wash). This image is Muybridge’s most famous single work, providing not only one of the best views of the bustling metropolis, but also a wealth of entertainment upon close examination. This picture tells many stories. Visible in striking detail are the mansions of the rich and the dwellings of the poor, the churches, hotels, banks, and other features. Muybridge also produced a mammoth plate panorama of San Francisco, which is excessively rare. The present, smaller version was issued folding, into cloth covers.

Works by Muybridge are in the collections of most major art museums worldwide, including the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the Museum of Modern Art and the Musée d’Orsay.

Please contact Arader Galleries for price information.