We the People: Protest and Patriotism
As part of the BIG IDEA project, We the People, the Sun Valley Center for the Arts is a 50 State Initiative partner of For Freedoms. Since 2016, For Freedoms has produced special exhibitions, town hall meetings, billboards, and lawn sign installations to spur greater participation in civic life. This year, For Freedoms launched its 50 State Initiative, a new phase of programming to encourage broad participation and inspire conversation around November’s midterm elections. Building off of the existing artistic infrastructure in the United States, For Freedoms has developed a network of more than 300 artists and 200 institutional partners who will produce nationwide public art installations, exhibitions and local community dialogues in order to inject nuanced, artistic thinking into public discourse. Centered around the vital work of artists, For Freedoms hopes that these exhibitions and related projects will model how arts institutions can become civic forums for action and discussion of values, place, and patriotism.
Center hours & location: Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm 191 Fifth Street East, Ketchum, Idaho Sun Valley Center for the Arts P.O. Box 656, Sun Valley, ID 83353 208.726.9491 • sunvalleycenter.org
110 N. Main Street, Hailey, Idaho 208.578.9122
September 28–December 14, 2018 A BIG IDEA Project of the Sun Valley Center for the Arts
Cover: Eugene Richards, Visitors behold the Liberty Bell in P hiladelphia, from The Lincoln Funeral Train, 2014, archival inkjet print, courtesy the artist Back Panel: Paul Fusco, USA. Harmans, MD. 1968. Robert KENNEDY funeral train, 1968, ©Paul Fusco/Magnum Photos Introduction Panel: Deborah Aschheim, San Francisco Peace March, April 1967 (after Michelle Vignes), 2016, ink and watercolor on Dura-Lar, courtesy the artist Inside, top to bottom, left to right: Paul Shambroom, Stockton, Utah (population 567) Town Council, June 11, 2001, 2001, pigmented inkjet print on canvas with varnish, stretched, maple frame, courtesy the artist Hugo Gellert, cover illustration for March for Peace, May 1st, 1952, 1952, New York, United Labor and People’s Committee for May Day, ink on paper, The Wolfsonian-Florida International University, Miami Beach, Florida, The Mitchell Wolfson, Jr. Collection Kate Haug, News Today: Matches, 2016, custom matchbox, courtesy the artist Mel Ziegler, Flag Exchange (detail), installed at the San Francisco Art Institute, 2011–present, collected flags, courtesy the artist and Galerie Perrotin
We the People: Protest and Patriotism September 28–December 14, 2018 A BIG IDEA Project of the Sun Valley Center for the Arts
As citizens in a representative democracy, Americans rely on elected officials to make legislation and policy—to act in the United States’ best interests domestically and internationally. But from the time of its founding, the U.S. has also been a nation that embraces the idea of participatory democracy. Our country functions because it allows (and depends upon) the participation of its citizens. Those seeking to participate in the democratic process can take a wide range of actions, from voting in elections to running for office, showing up for city council meetings, or organizing and joining public marches and rallies. In fact, public acts of protest have shaped America’s history since the moment in December 1773 when colonists gathered in Boston Harbor to reject a shipment of tea from the East India Company in protest of their lack of representation in British Parliament. Public protests have punctuated America’s history, bringing people together to speak out against slavery or the Vietnam War, and in favor of voting rights for women, expanded protections for workers, or civil rights for African-Americans, members of the
LGBTQ community and many others. Organizing publicly gives citizens with a shared set of beliefs the chance to speak with a unified voice about their vision for the country and the opportunity to effect social and political change. While marches and rallies may be among the most visible ways that Americans participate in their democracy, citizens also take quieter measures—exercising their right to vote, for example. Volunteering on a campaign. Or running for office in order to be part of the process of governing, which begins at the grassroots level. American democracy has never been neat and tidy; instead, it is complicated and sometimes messy. However, democracy is enriched and ensured by its citizens’ participation, whatever form that might take. And every act of participation, whether flying a flag or voting in elections, running for office or marching in the streets, is also an act of patriotism that affirms and celebrates our shared belief that as citizens, we have the right and the duty to help shape our nation’s government.
We the People: Protest and Patriotism September 28–December 14, 2018 A BIG IDEA Project of the Sun Valley Center for the Arts
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The exhibition features works that illuminate the many ways American citizens participate in our democracy. Historical pamphlets and books from the collection of the Wolfsonian Museum related to demonstrations for workers’ rights and women’s suffrage illustrate the long history of citizens organizing for political change. Materials from the collection of Wendy and Alan Pesky made in connection with marches in New York in support of Soviet Jewry shed light on Americans’ promotion of democratic reforms abroad through public action at home. Deborah Aschheim has made a series of drawings based on photographs and oral histories of protest marches in Southern California in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as drawings of participants at events throughout 2017. Kate Haug also revisits the protests of the 1960s in her project, News Today, a consideration of Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1968 Poor People’s Campaign. A print and embossed matchboxes that Haug made as part of the project ask viewers to consider the ways they engage in the democratic process today. The photographs in Paul Shambroom’s project Meetings document democracy at its most local level—city council meetings in small towns around the United States. Shambroom’s photos illustrate the role that everyday citizens play in government. The exhibition includes a selection of flags from Mel Ziegler’s ongoing project, Flag Exchange, through which he has exchanged a new flag for an older, tattered flag, with at least one person in each of the 50 states, illuminating the powerful symbolism of the American flag across the political spectrum. Two bodies of photographs reflect on moments of collective national mourning. Eugene Richards’ project Lincoln Funeral Train traces the path of Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train, which traveled more than 1600 miles from Washington, D.C., to Springfield, Illinois. Richards’ photographs ask viewers to think about how Lincoln’s legacy resonates today. Photographs Paul Fusco made while traveling with Robert F. Kennedy’s funeral train from New York City to Washington, D.C. depict the thousands of mourners who came out to pay their respects.
Artists as Agitators and Changemakers with Kristin Poole, Artistic Director
The War and Treaty
Evening Exhibition Tour and D iscussion with Artists Deborah Aschheim and Paul Shambroom Thu, Oct 11, 5:30pm Free at The Center, Ketchum
Evening Exhibition Tours
Thu, Nov 1 and Thu, Dec 6, 5:30pm Free at The Center, Ketchum Enjoy a glass of wine as you tour the exhibition with The Center’s curators and museum guides.
Gallery Walk
Fri, Nov 23, 4–6pm Free at The Center, Ketchum
Thu, Sep 27, 5:30pm The Center, Ketchum $10 / $12 nonmembers Art is a potent language that can agitate, provoke, excite and motivate. Since the onset of modernism through this contemporary moment, artists have positioned themselves as agents of societal change. From Dada’s provocation against World War I to Ai Weiwei’s documentation of political oppression, from Hans Haacke’s critiques of a corrupted art world to the street interventions of Banksy, artists have challenged social boundaries, exposed injustice and pushed for change. This lecture will explore the various methods that artists have used to activate change.
Jon Meacham:
“The Soul of America”
Wed, Oct 3, 2018, 6:30pm Church of the Big Wood, Ketchum $25 / $35 nonmembers $15 student/educator (limit to one per educator) Presidential historian, Pulitzer Prize winner, and contributor to TIME and The New York Times Book Review, Jon Meacham is a skilled raconteur with a depth of knowledge about politics, religion and current affairs. His new book, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels, examines the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in U.S. history when hope overcame division and fear. This lecture is presented in partnership with T he Community Library and has been generously supported by an anonymous gift and Marcia and Don Liebich.
Ambrogio Lorenzetti’s Allegory of Good and Bad Government: 14th Century Ideas with Relevance Today, with Elaine French
Thu, Oct 18, 5:30pm The Center, Ketchum $10 / $12 nonmembers At the beginning of the 14th century, the Italian city of Siena was governed by a group of nine wealthy merchants known as the Nove (Nine). While not a democratic form of governance, this oligarchy gave Siena a period of stability and prosperity that encouraged the p roduction of remarkable works of art. In the Palazzo Pubblico, the walls of the Nove’s meeting room were painted with extensive murals by Ambrogio Lorenzetti, The Allegory of Good and Bad Government, which provided moral lessons in governing and embodied the new civic humanism of the era. The ideas about government that Lorenzetti conveyed in his murals still resonate today. Elaine French received a B.A. in art history from Wellesley College and an M.A. in art history from San Jose State University. She also holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University in educational psychology.
Panel Discussion Governed by the People —Why Do We Serve?
Tue, Nov 13, 6pm The Community Library, Ketchum FREE Join moderator Courtney Washburn, Executive Director of Conservation Voters for Idaho, and panelists Amanda Breen, Ketchum City Councilor, Genevieve Chase, US Army Veteran, and participating artist Mel Ziegler, for a panel discussion exploring the challenges, rewards and compromises involved in service to our country in its various forms. The Center presents this panel discussion as a For Freedoms Town Hall as a partner in For Freedoms’ 50 State Initiative.
Thu, Nov 15, 7:30pm Sun Valley Opera House Tickets start at $35 members / $18.75 students As The War and Treaty, Michael and Tanya Trotter deliver live shows that make the hair on the backs of necks stand up. Michael is a wounded warrior who found his voice while serving in Iraq, when he was pulled from the frontlines to write songs for the fallen. Tanya is a lifelong artist, drawn to singing’s power to take others’ pain away. Their funky bass lines, keys, lap steel, acoustic strings and stripped-down percussion create a Swampy Southern soul bed for the couple’s transcendent voices. The War and Treaty will participate in The Center’s Professional Artist Residency program by visiting Blaine County Schools.
Films The Other Side of Everything
Thu, Nov 1, 4:30 and 7pm Magic Lantern Cinemas, Ketchum $10 / $12 nonmembers A locked door inside a Belgrade apartment has kept one family separated from their past for over 70 years. As the filmmaker begins an intimate conversation with her mother, the political fault line running through their home reveals a house and a country haunted by history. The chronicle of a family in Serbia turns into a searing portrait of an activist in times of great turmoil, questioning the responsibility of each generation to fight for their future.
Two Trains Runnin’
Thu, Nov 29, 4:30 and 7pm Magic Lantern Cinemas, Ketchum $10 / $12 nonmembers Two Trains Runnin’ is a feature-length documentary directed by acclaimed filmmaker Sam Pollard, narrated by Common, and featuring the music of Gary Clark Jr. The film pays tribute to a pioneering generation of musicians and cuts to the heart of our present moment, offering a crucial vantage from which to view the evolving dynamics of race in America.
Family Day It’s as American as Apple Pie!
Sat, Nov 3, 3–5pm The Center, Ketchum FREE Join the Sun Valley Center for the Arts to celebrate the USA! Express your patriotism through the creative process while having fun with your family and community. Participate in Maker Space activities; an American singalong; red, white and blue tie-dye; and a chance to look at and discuss art.
Sun Valley Center for the Arts sunvalleycenter.org
T H e atr e Woody Guthrie’s American Song Songs and Writings by Woody G uthrie, Conceived and Adapted by Peter Glazer, Orchestrations and Vocal A rrangements by Jeff Waxman Jun 26–Jul 15, 2018 Woody Guthrie’s American Song celebrates the life and work of one of the country’s greatest and most admired folk balladeers. Guthrie was a wandering minstrel and poet of the downtrodden, the voiceless, the powerless and the forgotten. He was a humanist who railed against injustice, particularly during the Great Depression, but also extolled the splendors of this country, especially in his most famous song, “This Land is Your Land.”
The Agitators—Play Reading by Mat Smart
Tue, Oct 23, 6:30pm Liberty Theatre, Hailey FREE with $10 suggested donation; pre-register through The Center The Agitators tells of the enduring but tempestuous friendship of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass. Great allies, and at times, great adversaries. Young abolitionists when they met in Rochester, New York, in the 1840s, they were full of hopes, dreams and a common purpose. As they grew to become the cultural icons we know today, their movements collided and their friendship was severely tested. They agitated the nation, they agitated each other and, in doing so, they helped shape the Constitution and the course of American history.
The BIG IDEA project We the People: Protest and Patriotism is generously supported by Jeri L. Wolfson