we discovered these above phoenix. then there's art work which celebrates people doing ordinary but indispensable stuff. this is up at timber line lodge. they were not used to seeing them or getting classes in journalism. they would get people in trouble. sometimes the art or the artist got in trouble. let's look at a few of the structures around california. this is built by the wpa. the noblist motive is the public good. imagine anybody saying that today.

this kind of work is a noble endeavor. county courthouses like this one in alameda. city halls all over california in a variety of styles. this one is at burbank. it hasn't been touched. fire stations all over the place. and police stations and armories. this is the police stables in golden gate park and public libraries. and then one at north berkeley. public hospitals. clinics and sanitary. as well as polio people did get tuberculosis.

remember that counties were strapped for funds. so the wpa gave it to them. children got health care. we were headed for a national health care system. we treat things differently now. essentially, what we have of med-cal is going to be slashed true. as an environmentist, i am opposed to this. they laid concrete in southern california. without which, a good deal would be washed into the ocean. the ccc and the wpa workers were trained for disaster relieve. we didn't have to rely on the national guard.

these kinds of things wouldn't be as disastrous. we need a new wpa. they are walking over the sidewalks, which is wpa. this was a demonstration outside of dianne feinstein's office. and demanding it not be torn down. the new deal moved in and gave rural areas water and electricity. this is one in modock county and we have cheaper electricity. and then, there were sustainable communities, people think they are discovering this at this time.

this one was done in georgia. this is one in maryland green belt outside of washington d.c. this is right outside of the co-op. and then urban roads like this in the los angeles river and this is being built. this is mira loma park. this is lark merced blvd. it's all made of clay. it's going to slump. these are the roads built in the oakland hills. nate, red woods. skyline. and enabled them to go up and

develop the hills. the rural roads that go through the coast range. this enabled them to get their stuff to market. this is at road built by the ccc. this is a bridge. this is highway one and you won't know, except you look at the bridge and you will see dates, 1938, 1939. the airstrips are ccc. and the one out at treasure island. long beach, burbank. this is oakland and the whole built line railroad was redone. 19 is a pwa project and our

great amphitheatres are from that time. this is santa barbara bowl. this is the forest theater in carmel and these are ccc workers putting huge bolder. here's 6 thousand people getting ready to enjoy oklahoma in that theater. big basin is a ccc project and this one, on the east river, new york. a project built where people from the lower east side could see performances and still do. our parks and recreation. almost all from them. that's the conservatory garden

and i photographed that all the time. this is up at jeweliard park. i thought i would show you san francisco. i read they improved every park. i didn't believe this at first. this is the fly casting pools. here was a fly casting champion ship. here it is today. it's still in use. the stables out there. they are meant so the public would have the opportunity previously only available to the elite, as it so often the case, as is with golf. like lincoln park built by the wpa. think of the experiences that people have had and the history

which is embodied in them. there is daves tennis stadium. here it is, this was a tournament for inner-city youth. archery at golden gate park. our play grounds. here it is in use today. this is bernal heights park. you can still see the gutters they put in there. this is buena vista parks. this is quezar park. this is mount davidson. look out for the rock.

this is on telegraph park. this is stern grove. this is a little known park above candle stick. here's my friend jake, standing by a wall. this was rosy play ground. they turned it into a park and it was also restored by wpa. i believe they torn down the house, which was unforgivable and the zoo is wpa. and here's the murals inside the mother's building. the marina sea walls and great aquatic park. the palace of fine arts.

we wouldn't have and a little further in, lake merit, this pier. alva rado park and then, some of you my recognize this. the berkeley rose garden. did it have to be this beautiful. finally, i'm going to wrap up. san francisco is rich in the various kinds of arts projects. we have a fabulous collection of stuff here. there were four components. there was visual arts, federal theater, federal musics and

federal writers. they employed many people. this is excellent to show the work. the visual arts project. it was especially important in san francisco because of dieggo rivera and radicalizing it. this is the coit towers. this was done under cw a. 1934. the wpa wasn't in existence. this is the very first of the relieve projects. harry hopkins said, they have to eat too. the artists should dig ditches like everybody else. this is antonio brinko. millions of americans got to hear live music for the first

time. this is the federal theater project. this is maxine albroro. it's been destroyed and one of my favorites done by helen bruten. it's to remind us, while i was looking at these projects, they employed 42 percent women. it's very unusual in the art world. and then of course, in san francisco, benny lafono. we had the first and the last of the new deal. coit tower is the first.

it is i think, one of the best in the country. it shows san francisco's history and that of human civilization shown through the eyes of labor. these are things that happened in san francisco's history. lynchings. again, coit tower, shows you the stock market dropping. something people weren't used to seeing. and a business many being held up. and in george washington high school, the farther of our country pointing the pioneers west as they walk over a dead indian. most of the art is not

controversial. most of the artists celebrates local produce. this is one of the most extraordinary murals i have seen. at a tuberculosis cemetery. they also painted a mural in san francisco. finally, it's on the outside of the berkeley community theater. all people brought together through the arts. unfortunately, it was not the last. the war came along. and anton refurgie. there were controversial. there were tried in washington in 1953.

he had a panel showing the arts and sciences. there is luther burbank and jack london. there was a thing on the side. it says federal art project and has beginning and ending date. that is a wall which becomes a tomb stone. the artists themselves are becoming ghosts. that's what he's doing there. joseph danish. head of the projects, it is it was a wonderful time that he woke up every morning wondering how long it would last. they were being paid to produce

public art. well, what happened of course is the war. the war came along. and roosevelt could see it coming. so, very few people understand the new deal segways into war. they beefed up the military bases like fort mason. my 1943, they are all killed. the war did what the new deal couldn't do, full employment. there were reports, it's still with mind numbing statistic. we have to rely on other people

to do it. the these projects enriched the lives of millions of people and does so today all the time. i have become aware of it, but very few people are. i have also become aware extraordinary people. here's a dedication of roosevelt. on the left, who painted the murals in the social security building with her husband and steph an kennedy. it's been a privilege to meet these people. just recently, i found this

statue of roosevelt. is over looks oslow harbor. they revere roosevelt, because of what they learned from the new deal about how to build a civil society. they didn't get rid of it, they expanded it. just like other scandinavian countries are consistently rated as the happiest in the world. the new deal continues to live on there. thank you. [applause].

charles bennett's high school dream was to teach in the old neighborhood. but without the money for college, all he got was the old neighborhood. support the united negro college fund. a mind is a terrible thing to waste. >> just a few steps away from union square is a quiet corner stone of san francisco's our community to the meridian gallery has a 20-year history of supporting visual arts. experimental music concert, and also readings. >> give us this day our daily bread at least three times a day. and lead us not into temptation

to often on weekdays. [laughter] >> meridians' stands apart from the commercial galleries around union square, and it is because of their core mission, to increase social, philosophical, and spiritual change my isolated individuals and communities. >> it gives a statement, the idea that a significant art of any kind, in any discipline, creates change. >> it is philosophy that attracted david linger to mount a show at meridian. >> you want to feel like your work this summer that it can do some good. i felt like at meridian, it could do some good. we did not even talk about price until the day before the show. of course, meridian needs to support itself and support the community. but that was not the first consideration, so that made me very happy. >> his work is printed porcelain. he transfers images onto and

spoils the surface a fragile shes of clay. each one, only one-tenth of an inch thick. >> it took about two years to get it down. i would say i lose 30% of the pieces that i made. something happens to them. they cracked, the break during the process. it is very complex. they fall apart. but it is worth it to me. there are photographs i took 1 hours 99 the former soviet union. these are blown up to a gigantic images. they lose resolution. i do not mind that, because my images are about the images, but they're also about the idea, which is why there is text all over the entire surface. >> marie in moved into the mansion on powell street just five years ago. its galleries are housed in one of the very rare single family residences around union square. for the 100th anniversary of the mansion, meridian hosted a

series of special events, including a world premiere reading by lawrence ferlinghetti. >> the birth of an american corporate fascism, the next to last free states radio, the next-to-last independent newspaper raising hell, the next-to-last independent bookstore with a mind of its own, the next to last leftie looking for obama nirvana. [laughter] the first day of the wall street occupation set forth upon this continent a new revolutionary nation. [applause] >> in addition to its own programming as -- of artist talks, meridian has been a downtown host for san francisco

states well-known port trees center. recent luminaries have included david meltzer, steve dixon, and jack hirsch man. >> you can black as out of the press, blog and arrest us, tear gas, mace, and shoot us, as we know very well, you will, but this time we're not turning back. we know you are finished. desperate, near the end. hysterical in your flabbergastlyness. amen. >> after the readings, the crowd headed to a reception upstairs by wandering through the other gallery rooms in the historic home. the third floor is not usually reserved for just parties, however. it is the stage for live performances. ♪

under the guidance of musical curators, these three, meridian has maintained a strong commitment to new music, compositions that are innovative, experimental, and sometimes challenging. sound art is an artistic and event that usually receives short shrift from most galleries because san francisco is musicians have responded by showing strong support for the programming. ♪ looking into meridian's future, she says she wants to keep doing the same thing that she has been doing since 1989. to enlighten and disturbed. >> i really believe that all the arts have a serious function

and that it helps us find out who we are in a much wider sense than we were before we experienced that work of art. ♪

>> the public wants to access particular information about your house or neighborhood we point them to gis. gis is a combination of maps and data. not a graphic you see on a screen. you get the traffic for the streets the number of crimes for a police district in a period of time. if the idea of combining the different layerce of information and stacking them on top of each other to present to the public. >> other types of gis are web based mapping systems. like google earth, yahoo maps. microsoft. those are examples of on line mapping systems that can be used to find businesses or get driving directions or check on traffic conditions. all digital maps.

>> gis is used in the city of san francisco to better support what departments do. >> you imagine all the various elements of a city including parcels and the critical infrastructure where the storm drains are. the city access like the traffic lights and fire hydrants. anything you is represent in a geo graphic space with be stored for retrieval and analysis. >> the department of public works they maintain what goes on in the right-of-way, looking to dig up the streets to put in a pipe. with the permit. with mapping you click on the map, click on the street and up will come up the nchgz that will help them make a decision.

currently available is sf parcel the assessor's application. you can go to the assessor's website and bring up a map of san francisco you can search by address and get information about any place in san francisco. you can search by address and find incidents of crime in san francisco in the last 90 days. we have [inaudible] which allows you to click on a map and get nchldz like your supervisor or who your supervisor is. the nearest public facility. and through the sf applications we support from the mayor's office of neighborhood services. you can drill down in the neighborhood and get where the newest hospital or police or

fire station. >> we are positive about gis not only people access it in the office but from home because we use the internet. what we used to do was carry the large maps and it took a long time to find the information. >> it saves the city time and money. you are not taking up the time of a particular employee at the assessor's office. you might be doing things more efficient. >> they have it ready to go and say, this is what i want. >> they are finding the same things happening on the phone where people call in and ask, how do i find this information? we say, go to this website and they go and get the information easily. >> a picture tells a thousand