San Francisco, Between the Bridges by Max Pollak

San Francisco, Between the Bridges by Max Pollak

San Francisco, Between the Bridges

Max Pollak

Title

San Francisco, Between the Bridges

 
Artist

Max Pollak

  1886 - 1970 (biography)
Year
1949  
Technique
color softground etching & aquatint 
Image Size
12 7/8 x 20" platemark 
Signature
pencil, lower right 
Edition Size
91 of 150  
Annotations
titled, lower left 
Reference
Triton catalogue 63, illustrated on page [16] 
Paper
ivory wove 
State
published 
Publisher
artist 
Inventory ID
23279 
Price
SOLD
Description

Max and Friedl Pollak traveled across the United States before settling in Sausalito, California in 1938. As they had traveled Max captured the cities with his impressionistic color intaglios; New York, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, Washington DC, New Orleans, etc. Pollak did this large color intaglio in California around 1949, using the tonal lines that softground etching can create and added color using aquatint, printed a la poupée.

This view is from the Marin Headlands and Sausalito looking southeast toward San Francisco. In the distance, at the top left, is the Bay Bridge, connecting San Francisco to the East Bay cities. At right are the towers of the Golden Gate Bridge which connects the city with Marin County and cities north. In the foreground is Highway 101 which runs along the coast of California. Visible at the base of San Francisco Bay is Horseshoe Cove which is a historic marina at Fort Baker and at the top of the bay is San Francisco, often referred to as Bagdad by the Bay by columnist Herb Caen.

The cove was quiet and protected and the San Carlos, the first Spanish ship to sail in San Francisco Bay, anchored near these waters in 1775. The U.S. Army purchased the land in 1866 and the began building a breakwater. This area was used for the production of concrete for building the Golden Gate Bridge and the fort was instrumental for the defense of the San Francisco Bay during World War II.