New York, NY (Top40 Charts) When
Franklin Roosevelt created the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in May of 1935, he wanted to use the arts in
America to help lift us out of the Great Depression. This month at the Smithsonian American Art Museum a new film will celebrate the arts of the WPA that helped us rebuild our society after the great crash of 1929.
On June 17, Connecticut filmmakers Michael Maglaras and Terri Templeton of 217 Films return to the Smithsonian with their new film "Enough to Live On: The Arts of the WPA." Last year they screened "The Great Confusion: The 1913 Armory Show" to a capacity crowd.
"Enough to Live On" celebrates the 80th anniversary of the Works Progress Administration and the Federal Art Project; the
New Deal initiatives that put artists, writers, musicians, and actors on the federal payroll and back to work, as a part of our nation's recovery from the effects of the Great Depression.
Featuring more than 70 works of art from this period, including notable works by
Rockwell Kent, Dorothea Lange,
Stuart Davis, and Reginald Marsh, as well as rare footage of WPA artists at work, this film tells the story of how
Franklin Roosevelt and the
New Deal moved art in
America out of the rarified atmosphere of the elite and brought it directly to the American people as an inspiration and catalyst for change and recovery in the 1930s.
Excerpts from the film can be viewed at this link: https://vimeo.com/two17films.
A docent-led tour of the museum's
New Deal artworks will be held before the screening.
The next stop for this film is Portland, Maine. Screening dates are being added frequently and the tour will continue through 2015. The full schedule can be viewed at this link: https://two17filmsschedule.blogspot.com.
What: "Enough to Live On: The Arts of the WPA" introduced by filmmaker Michael Maglaras. A reception will follow the screening.
When: Wednesday, June 17
Gallery Talk: 5:30pm (docent-led tour of the museum's
New Deal artworks)
Film Screening: 6:30pm
Where: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Gallery Talk - Meet in F Street Lobby
Film Screening - McEvoy Auditorium - G Street Lobby Entrance
Cost: Free
FMI: https://ow.ly/NO71x
https://www.two17films.com
