San Francisco Watercolors - Artist Dale Perkins
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​San Francisco Watercolor Artist Dale Perkins

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Dale Perkins was born in Minnesota and raised in San Francisco.  He attended the San Francisco Academy of Art on an art scholarship.

Dale watched San Francisco change through the years. He recalls Playland at the Beach, the old Key System trains and Kezar Pavilion where he played basketball against former Mayor George Moscone and with Boston Celtic star Jim Luscotoff. His brother, Dean, participated in the first United Nations Meeting at the S.F. Opera House.

Personal memories also include taking his wife Evie, to Mel's Drive In on their first date, watching her being crowned Homecoming Queen at San Francisco State University and later getting married on Treasure Island.

And as a child while fishing on San Francisco's Municipal Pier, he witnessed the last attempt to escape from Alcatraz Island, hearing gun shots and viewing faint flashes of light.

He was on Market Street on V-J Day and selling newspapers at Hyde and Ellis when the news headlines shouted that FDR had died. He collected autographs of celebrities at the Golden Gate Theater on Market Street: Martha Ray, The Three Stooges, Bing Crosby and Eleanor Powell. Later he worked as an elevator boy at the Chancellor and St. Francis Hotels.

As a young man, Dale listened to Tony Bennett sing "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" in the Venetian Room at the Fairmont Hotel. He observed the construction of Henry Doelger's planned community called Westlake, just south of San Francisco. Dale and his young family lived in one of those "little boxes made of ticky tacky" surrounded by cow pastures and by ponds full of frogs.

Dale's Artistic Talents

Dale's interest in art began at an early age. When he was 12, he studied at the California School of Fine Arts. At 13, Tack Knight, a nationally syndicated San Francisco cartoonist, tutored him. In high school and college he took all of the art classes that he could fit into his schedule.

Dale taught art to students ranging from preschoolers to post graduates. In the Army he was Post Artist assigned to Troop Information and Education for the 6th Army. He painted posters for training infantrymen. His army buddy was Leonard Nimoy (Spok) of Star Trek fame. Later he became Art Consultant for the Burlingame School District. And he has done political cartoons for 11 Bay area Newspapers.

Dale lives in California and works out of his home studio.

Click on the arrow to see San Francisco Watercolor Artist Dale Perkins at the Golden Gate Bridge

Enjoy this VLog by Watercolor Artist Dale Perkins

Watercolors by Dale Perkins