Fisherman's Wharf

Oil on canvas 14x18

SOLD

Most of the boats berthed at Fisherman’s Wharf belong to a third generation of fishing craft piloted by descendants of the fishermen who have made their livelihoods on the waters of San Francisco Bay for many generations.

From the days of the Gold Rush until the turn of the Century, the San Francisco fishing fleet was composed of lateen-rigged sailboats, called feluccas. They were built in the same style as the boats the local Italian fishermen knew in their native land. Green was the prevailing color of the tiny boats, and the name of a patron saint usually appeared on the hull. The fishermen themselves were as colorful as their craft. Their natural talent for song was to be heard in renditions of arias from Verdi, lusty if not always true to the ear. In the fog-shrouded waters outside the Golden Gate, singing was a means of communication. You could not see a nearby boat in the fog, but from the song of its captain, you knew it was there.