The Invisible Mural at BHS by Frederick Pawla

Click on a section of the mural to show a large detail view in a new window.

Burlingame High School, built in 1922, was the recipient of a 68' oil-on-canvas mural painted around 1930 by Frederick Alexander Pawla. It was commissioned by the W.P.A. (Works Progress Administration), and its six-foot-tall canvas panels framed the entrance to the auditorium.

Student editorials in the school newspaper in December 1972 and January 1973 described a hall beautification plan for a new color scheme and student-painted graphics. The plan made no mention of the 43-year-old mural.

Later in 1973, the hall beautification backers revealed plans to move the mural to the school's cafeteria. The 1950's era cafeteria is a separate building whose wall space has no relation to that of the main building.

The Pawla mural was preserved in place and remains there today thanks to the vision of the school administration, support from the local historical & arts community, and a 395-to-175 vote by the 1973 student body.

A student editorial in June 1973 showed that the hall beautification plan was implemented without having to move the mural, and without the student-created graphics.

The links below contain opinions, editorials and reports from 1973.

The purpose of this site is to share archival materials about the Pawla mural with people in Burlingame and beyond who are inspired to further protect and preserve it. Perhaps it will inspire others to document and preserve W.P.A. murals in other communities.

Thank you, Dave Sullivan and Matt Biggar of Burlingame High School, for allowing me to photograph the mural recently. Thank you again Denise Domergue for your excellent report. And I would like to extend my gratitude to the late art historian Betty Lochrie Hoag McGlynn, who offered valuable research about the artist, saving the murals from a one-way trip to the cafeteria.

-- David Newman
<wpa AT telenaut.com>
San Francisco
April 24, 2003

PS: Why is the Pawla mural invisible? Ask anyone who attended Burlingame High if they remember a mural.

Photos (2003):

Full panorama: 2300 pixels wide:
[scroll right to view the full image]

Left Side Detail ::: Right Side Detail

Text archives (1973):

BHS Newspaper Editorials:
Prison-Green Halls: 12/12/72
There's Hope for BHS Halls: 1/18/73
Graphics Will Be Painted: 6/7/73

Campaign Poster: Within Two Weeks

Newspaper Editorial:
Whither? Where Do They Belong?
Opinion: In the Hall
Opinion: Or Elsewhere
- Hillsborough Boutique & Villager
Burlingame, CA

Newspaper Article:
WPA Mural Stirs Debate
- The Advance-Star, Burlingame, CA

Statements from local art historian:
Letter: The Worth of the Murals
Bio: Frederick Alexander Pawla
- Betty Lochrie Hoag, San Mateo, CA

Estimate for Restoration & Conservation:
Preliminary Report
- Denise Domergue, Art Department
University of California, Davis