Esther Bruton and the Cirque Room murals (Part 2)

Credited as being the first bar in San Francisco to open after the repeal of Prohibition, the Cirque Room lounge in the Fairmont Hotel made its debut on May 10, 1935 with a lavish dinner dance. Very quickly, Esther Bruton’s murals became the talk of the town. As Helen recalled, “It was a beautiful room. It was a lovely room and [Pflueger] had such finesse and discretion about [it].”[1]

Junius Cravens of the San Francisco News attended the opening of the Cirque Room and devoted the majority of his article to praise of Esther’s murals:

The Fairmont Circus Lounge...is an artistic achievement. This has become possible partly because Timothy Pflueger...procured a real artist--and just the right real artist--to design and execute the decorations. The circus is a subject made to order for Esther Bruton...in rendering [the murals] she has proven her creative strength by dominating her subject and utilizing it merely as a medium rather than an objective. The result is one of the best mural jobs that has been done in the Bay Region--a mural which decorates a room without overpowering it and seems to belong there. Aside from their artistic merits, Miss Bruton’s decorations are delightfully humorous caricatures of the Circus scene. The artist appears to have had so much fun doing them… [yet] they are rendered with admirable restraint and in excellent taste.[2]

Photos of the Cirque Room when it first opened in May 1935.
California Arts & Architecture, June 1935, p. 20.

The June 1935 edition of California Arts & Architecture magazine devoted an article to the new bars and lounges in San Francisco, and said this of the Cirque Room: “It may well be that nothing can increase the pleasure of drinking a perfect cocktail, but if anything can, the work of Miller and Pflueger, architects, and Esther Bruton, the mural painter, have done it in this room… If this room cannot persuade you to two cocktails it will, at least, tempt you to linger over one.”[3] Esther’s murals were such a hit that the bar named a cocktail after her; it was called the “Ecky”, which was Esther’s nickname.

The Cirque Room became one of San Francisco’s most popular lounges, hosting socialites, celebrities, and even President Truman in 1952.[4] After a twenty-five year run, the bar closed in 1959 -- its furniture was put in storage and its doors were boarded up. In a 1975 interview, Helen lamented that the murals are “all gone now.” Yet miraculously, they survived. In 1981, the Fairmont Hotel restored and refurbished the lounge to look almost exactly as it did in the 1930s; the biggest change is that one side of the room was opened up to allow for a hallway to pass through the space. The former owner and president of the Fairmont, Richard Swig, tracked down the Bruton sisters, who were in their eighties at the time, and invited them to consult on the renovation. Swig remembered, “They were thrilled… We were lucky we didn’t lose those paintings.”[5] Considering how much 1930s-era artwork has been destroyed, the fact that the Fairmont preserved Esther’s circus murals is commendable.

 

Many sources suggest that all three sisters were involved in creating the Cirque Room murals. Although Margaret assisted with the gold leaf, the murals are unquestionably Esther’s creation and the result of her unique vision. Unfortunately, the sign outside the Cirque Room attributes the murals to Margaret Bruton, even though Esther’s signature is clearly visible on one of the walls. I am working with the Fairmont to correct this error.

Today, the Cirque Room is used for special events, parties, and weddings; however, many of the murals are visible if you walk through the adjoining hallway. This sparkling Art Deco cocktail lounge, adorned by Esther’s circus murals, remains the jewel of the Fairmont Hotel.

If you are interested in renting out the Cirque Room for a meeting, wedding, or other special event, you can find more information here.

All photos are of Esther Bruton's Cirque Room murals in the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco.  Photos by the author.

---

^[1]Interview with Lydia Modi Vitale and Steven Gelber, 26 Feb. 1975.  de Saisset Art Gallery and Museum, University of Santa Clara, p. 2.

^[2]San Francisco News, 11 May 1935.

^[3]California Arts & Architecture, June 1935, p. 20.

^[4]Madera Tribune, 4 Oct. 1952, p. 4.

^[5]Quoted in Karen Liberatore. “The Circus is Back in Town,” San Francisco Chronicle, 31 Jan. 1988.