Modern Day Cave Paintings?

When the writing on the wall is a cartoon, and just as mysterious.

The prehistoric cave paintings of Lascaux found in 1940, gave archaeologists an insight into life 15,000 to 17,000 years ago.  However, hidden visual stories of how people lived, or what they were concerned with, are found not only in caves in France. 

Ceiling beam images formerly in Building 311, Camp Parks.

The wall paintings of Camp Parks are in no way as significant, but they are as puzzling.  What do they say about military life in the 1950s?  Who were these people?  Who was the artist?  When exactly were they painted?  And who paints cartoon figures on ceiling beams?

These and other questions will probably remain forever uncertain, especially since the building they were in was demolished in 2019.  And probably no one besides a local historian will ever really care. 

The wall paintings probably date from the time when Camp Parks was Parks Air Force Base (1952-1959).  For much of that time, the base’s primary function was basic military training for new recruits. That they are images of Air Force personnel comes from the personnel with blue uniforms and insignia unique to the Air Force in the 1950s.  More common to young men in uniform, some of the images refer to pay day, romance (real or imagined) and promotions.

Details of life at Parks Air Force Base, sometime in the 1950s.

Also, more common to all armed services personnel, are the themes of marching, eating and KP duty.

The most common memories of basic training.

Beyond that we don’t know much of anything about the cartoonist/painter.  But we do know one curious fact about him, that he had some question about where his son would wind up.

Someone’s unknown future, now all played out.

Note:  Some images courtesy of Steve Elstrom.