ENCORE: Celebrating New Deal History at Samohi!
SANTA MONICA, CA – Due to popular demand, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and the Santa Monica Conservancy are extending a second invitation to the public to view Samohi’s New Deal art collection and artifacts on Saturday and Sunday, December 27 and 28th, from noon to 4 PM.
Samohi has the most comprehensive collection of artworks from the New Deal in Santa Monica, which includes sculpture, art objects, mosaics and paintings. Produced under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration/Federal Art Project, artists were commissioned and paid to create public artworks, providing them with critical economic opportunities during the Depression. The paintings now exhibited at the Roberts Art Gallery at Samohi are rarely displayed and will be on view only through December. Visitors are also invited to view the Viking Statue and Senior Bench, New Deal artworks recently relocated and restored, which received a 2025 Preservation Award from the Santa Monica Conservancy.
Registration is free: https://smc.givecloud.co/encore-samohi
The Samohi campus was rebuilt in the 1930s due to several converging historic events: the catastrophic Long Beach earthquake of 1933, which devastated our schools; the passage of the Field Act, requiring strict new building codes for seismic safety; and the availability of Federal funds from a variety of New Deal economic recovery programs. Today’s campus reflects a more recent Master Plan; however, the preservation of New Deal art and artifacts retains essential links to Samohi’s history.
Santa Monica was transformed during the New Deal with major public works and renovation projects. Our City Hall, Main Post Office, St. Monica Statue, Colorado Viaduct, California Incline, Roosevelt Highway, reconstructed public schools, and less visible water management projects were some of the results.
Entry will be through the 4th Street gate, and at the Olympic and 6th Street gates (some parking may be available).
Ken Bernstein is a Principal City Planner for the Los Angeles Department of City Planning, where he serves as Manager of the City’s Office of Historic Resources and directs Los Angeles’ historic preservation policies. As lead staff member for the City’s Cultural Heritage Commission, he has overseen the completion of SurveyLA, a multi-year citywide survey of historic resources, and has led the creation of a comprehensive historic preservation program for Los Angeles. He previously served for eight years as Director of Preservation Issues for the Los Angeles Conservancy. Ken is currently an Adjunct Professor in urban planning for the USC Price School of Public Policy and serves as a Senior Fellow for UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs. He holds a Master’s Degree from Princeton University and a B.A. from Yale University. He is the author of Preserving Los Angeles: How Historic Places Can Transform America’s Cities.
Barbara Tejada is the Cultural Resources Program Manager for the Angeles District of California State Parks. In this role, Barbara oversees historic structures and landscapes, museum collections, archaeological resources, and collections, and acts as the district tribal liaison. Barbara has over 25 years’ experience in cultural heritage in Southern California, working for the Getty Museum, Caltrans, cultural resource consulting firms, and State Parks, with expertise in pre-contact and historical archaeology. She has participated in several archaeological projects throughout the region. Barbara has contributed to the preservation and interpretation of California’s diverse cultural heritage. Barbara also sits as board chair for the Oakbrook Chumash Indian Museum in Thousand Oaks, where she works to promote understanding of Indigenous history and culture.
Randy Young is a local historian, author, and activist who has lived in the Rustic Canyon neighborhood of Pacific Palisades since 1953. After graduating from Pacific Palisades High School, Randy went on to become president of the Thomas Young Photo Studio from 1980 to 1995, and since 1974, chairman of the Casa Vieja Press. There, he authored or coauthored several books on local history, including “Rustic Canyon and the Story of the Uplifters” and “Santa Monica Canyon and Other Tales.” As a longtime community advocate, Randy’s associations have included the Pacific Palisades Community Council, Will Rogers Cooperative Association, Southern California Environment and History Conference, Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission, Los Liones State Park, and the Brentwood-Palisades Community Plan.
