It's almost like stepping into a time machine: An extraordinary exhibit of rare photographs from the 1930s is being displayed to give a glimpse into what life was like in the Barbary Coast, Chinatown, North Beach and Telegraph Hill during an era that was less glamorous and more workaday.
"San Francisco: Lost and Reclaimed" includes 35 prints shot by Kenneth Cathcart from 1936 through 1938. They'll be unveiled at an opening from 6pm–9pm Friday at JEFF, 1317 Grant Ave., but were curated and printed by Schein & Schein gallery, known for its exquisite antique map and rare book shop just up the street. The photos will be on display at JEFF throughout May from noon–7pm Thursdays through Saturdays.
Photo: "Soda Fountain Selfie," Kenneth Cathcart and companion; Kenneth Cathcart courtesy of Schein & Schein
Jimmie Schein, who owns the gallery with his wife, Marti, said Cathcart's friend and neighbor Laura Direnzo (who was a dear friend of his) sold him about 7,500 negatives taken throughout the city from the 1936 to 1958. Schein has had about 1,500 made into prints, and this show is just the start.
"We've chosen these early years because they're experimental as well as show raw talent, undefined, and it's pretty incredible," he said. He decided to focus on images from the northeast part of the city first because "this is a great neighborhood and it's fun to share that," he said. The pictures reveal "a Barbary Coast that's an industrial environment," he said.
Part of the joy for Schein is identifying the locations in the shots. "All of these places still exist. There's Sotto Mare right there," he said, pointing to a streetscape. "I went for dinner there last night." Another photo shows a vacant and "for lease" 555 Pacific Ave., before the Hippodrome moved in. Other addresses show what 438 Pacific Ave., 13 Alta St. or 1517 Alta St. looked like back in the day.
Photo: "212 Union Street" by Kenneth Cathcart, courtesy of Schein & Schein
Schein will be on site on Friday to lend context and explanation to the pictures, which otherwise could be lost on the viewer. He also said it's no coincidence the show is opening on May Day, considering many of the photos reveal a working-class side of the city. One picture shows a longshoreman at the Filbert Steps. Schein said he could imagine the sounds and smells from the nearby shipyards along the Embarcadero. In an era of segregation, Cathcart also had entreé to photograph much of Chinatown, because many hired him to document celebrations and family parties.
Photo: "Very Handsome Man," Kenneth Cathcart courtesy of Schein & Schein
The photos, remarkably, were mothballed for more than a quarter of a century before Schein came to possess them. "When Cathcart died [in 1978], the landlord contacted relatives and no one wanted anything to do with it," Schein said. Direnzo, who died in 2005, kept them in storage from Cathcart's death until 2004, and Schein has been working on the project ever since. Most of the images were shot on two-by-three-inch commercial film using a Leica or Hasselblad camera, Schein said, adding, "We found his first roll of film he probably ever took."
Jimmie Schein sets up the exhibit. Photo: Geri Koeppel/Hoodline
Though initially a mapmaker and historian, Cathcart became a commercial photographer and was part of a group of artists who worked out of the "Monkey Block," as the Montgomery Block building was known then. Built in 1853 as the city's first fireproof and earthquake-resistant building, the four-story structure was located at 628 Montgomery St. at Washington Street, where the TransAmerica Pyramid now stands. "The Monkey Block was truly a Bohemian bastion," Schein said. "All of the great artists of the day worked out of that locale."
Most of Cathcart's photos have been enlarged to 16-by-20 prints, but some are 20-by-30. Some have sleek, modern mountings and others are framed. They'll run $475 to $575 and were created specifically for the show, but Schein said unframed, matted photos will run $60, and they're also selling prints online in various sizes for as little as $15 for an 8-by-10. Schein also plans to work with nonprofits and libraries to exhibit more of the collection next year.
Schein & Schein. Photo: Geri Koeppel/Hoodline
