Large Paintings

Lawrence Ferlinghetti had the same studio in Building 101 at Hunters Point Shipyard since the 1980s. Most of these paintings were created in that spacious, light-filled space overlooking the Bay and the arrested decay of the de-comissioned Navy shipyard. 

In a conversation in 2014 with John Held, Jr. for SFAQ he said "I got my studio at Hunters Point Shipyard in 1980. So, I’ve been at Hunters Point for thirty-three years. I have a huge studio there. It’s sixteen hundred square feet. I was one of the first ones who got there, and I picked out one of the best spaces." 

Though he held onto the studio until his death, Ferlinghetti painted his last paintings there in 2016 at the age of 97. In a notable break from his typical color palettes, his final 4 paintings were in blacks and grays, an adjustment that made painting still possible as the contrast was easier to see due to his failing eyesight. One of those final four works, "Voyage to the Unknown (Voyage I)," is seen at the bottom of this page.