Classic 1960’s Rock Posters

The folk-rock music of mid-1960s San Francisco included an exciting visual counterpoint: the trippy designs used to advertise musical lineups at The Fillmore and other local venues. The Posters have become a celebrated art form, and the era is remembered not only for its psychedelic sounds but also for these fascinating and often confounding images. This lecture provides you with ways to help mine these artworks for meaning based on your own experiences and perceptions. Russ Bertetta who attended some of the historic shows that were advertised, will join Rodney Paul to discuss the Big 5, a group of artists whose distinctive designs defined the genre. We’ll watch excerpts of interviews with the artists and examine videos of the top-billed musicians. Contemporary artists who have followed in these giant’s footsteps will be highlighted.  

Rodney Paul is a guide who has led thousands of people on walking tours including Haight Ashbury, Oracle Park, the War Memorial Opera House and the Salesforce Transit Center. In 2017, he created a series of rock music programs in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love that were presented in libraries throughout the Bay Area.  When COVID began, he converted these programs and material from his other tours to Zoom. These programs are now offered in-person. Rodney has lived in the Bay Area since 1986 and became a guide in 2015 after a career in the software industry. He excels at public speaking, and his presentations and tours are interactive and fun. 

Russ Bertetta‘s love of 1960s rock music blossomed during his years as student at USF from 1967-72. During that time, he visited many local venues including the Fillmore Auditorium and Winterland and has collected classic rock posters from that period, Russ’ son Chris has carried on the tradition and is now a poster artist based in North Carolina.  Russ taught American History for 30 years at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo and has been a tour guide at Oracle Park since 2014. 

If this talk interests you, then please be sure to check out the 60’s Revolution: Clothes as Social and Political Protest talk on August 23.