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The Bohemian Club is a private club with two locations: a city clubhouse in the Nob Hill district of San Francisco, California, and the Bohemian Grove, a retreat north of the city in Sonoma County. Founded in 1872 from a regular meeting of journalists, artists, and musicians, it soon began to accept businessmen and entrepreneurs as permanent members, as well as offering temporary membership to university presidents (notably UC Berkeley and Stanford) and military commanders who were serving in the San Francisco Bay Area. Today, the club has a membership of many local and global leaders, ranging from artists and musicians to businessmen. Membership is restricted to men only.
Journalists were to be regular members; artists and musicians were to be honorary members. The Elite directory for San Francisco and Oakland, Argonaut Publishing Co., 1879, pp. 175–184. The group quickly relaxed its rules for membership to permit some people to join who had little artistic talent, but enjoyed the arts and had greater financial resources. Eventually, the original "bohemian" members were in the minority and the wealthy and powerful controlled the club.Bohemian Club. Constitution, By-laws, and Rules, Officers, Committees, and Members, Bohemian Club, 1904, p. 11. ''Semi-centennial high jinks in the Grove, 1922, Bohemian Club, 1922, pp. 11–22.Parry, 2005, pp. 218–219. Club members who were established and successful, respectable family men, defined for themselves their own form of bohemianism, which included men who were , sometime outdoorsmen, and appreciators of the arts. Club member and poet George Sterling responded to this redefinition:
Oscar Wilde, upon visiting the club in 1882, is reported to have said, "I never saw so many well-dressed, well-fed, business-looking Bohemians in my life."
The club motto is "Weaving Spiders Come Not Here", a line taken from Act 2, Scene 2, of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. The club motto implies that outside concerns and business deals are to be left outside. When gathered in groups, Bohemians usually adhere to the injunction, though discussion of business often occurs between pairs of members.Peter Martin Phillips, A Relative Advantage: Sociology of the San Francisco Bohemian Club , 1994.
Proper left, upper corner:
Despite his purist views, Sterling associated very closely with the Bohemian Club and caroused with artist and industrialist alike at the [[Bohemian Grove]].
Membership
A number of past membership lists are in the public domain, but modern club membership lists are private. Some prominent figures have been given honorary membership, such as Richard Nixon and William Randolph Hearst. Members have included some U.S. presidents (usually before they are elected to office), many cabinet officials, and of large corporations, including major financial institutions. Major military contractors, oil companies, banks (including the Federal Reserve), utilities, and national media have high-ranking officials as club members or guests. Many members are, or have been, on the board of directors of several of these corporations; however, artists and lovers of art are among the most active members. The club's bylaws require ten percent of the membership be accomplished artists of all types (composers, musicians, singers, actors, lighting artists, painters, authors, etc.). During the first half of the 20th century, membership in the club was especially valued by painters and sculptors, who exhibited their work on the premises, in both permanent displays and special exhibitions, and did not pay any commissions on sales to members. (2025). 9781467545679, East Bay Heritage Project. ISBN 9781467545679 An online facsimile of the entire text of Vol. 1 is posted on the Traditional Fine Arts Organization website (http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/10aa/10aa557.htm ). Many of the club's artists were nationally recognized figures, such as William Keith, Arthur Frank Mathews, Xavier Martinez, Jules Eugene Pages, Edwin Deakin, William Ritschel, Jo Mora, Maynard Dixon, and Arthur Putnam.
Bret Harte Memorial
A bronze relief by Jo Mora is installed on the exterior of the building. It serves as a memorial to author and poet Bret Harte. The relief, which is by by , was first dedicated on August 15, 1919, as a tribute by Mora, who was a member, to fellow Bohemian Club member Harte. The relief shows fifteen characters from books by Harte. It is inscribed:
Proper left, lower edge:
Top center wreath:
followed by the founder's mark for L. De Rome. When the original building was torn down, the relief was removed. In 1934, it was reinstalled on the building that stands today.
See also
Bibliography
Primary sources
External links
Categories: Official Website, 1872 Establishments In California, Bohemianism, Clubs And Societies In California, Culture In The San Francisco Bay Area, Men's Organizations In The United States, Nob Hill, San Francisco, Organizations Based In San Francisco, Organizations Based In Sonoma County, California, Organizations Established In 1872, Gentlemen's Clubs In California
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