Join us on July 8 from 3:30pm-5:30pm for a free screening of the 1979 documentary “The New Deal for Artists”, narrated by Orson Welles. This screening is a part of the 2026-2027 recognition of artist Mietzi “Marie” Bleck, who created works that have hung in the Library since 1937 as a part of the WPA-Federal Arts Project. Thanks to a sponsorship by the Friends of the Mercer Library, the Artist in Residence program is free for all who wish to participate and enjoy our local artists’ work. For questions or additional details, please contact the Library at 715-476-2366.
Synopsis (from Corinth Films):
With the failure of President Herbert Hoover’s policies and ensuing Great Depression, Americans were desperate for help. Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s pragmatic New Deal Program aimed to put US citizens back on their feet and back to work, and also included an innovative and lively public arts program designed to provide economic relief and jobs for artists of all walks. Nearly every artist born between 1900-1915 spent their formative years under the aegis of the Works Progress Administration. Unfortunately, with the arrival of Martin Dies’ House Un-American Activities Committee, theatre actors, directors, writers and painters soon found themselves the target of Republicans’ aggressive anti-communist agendas and the W.P.A. was under full-blown political attack.
A warm look back at W.P.A. and the most ambitious government-supported arts program since the Italian Renaissance, THE NEW DEAL FOR ARTISTS was originally made for German television as a 90-minute documentary by director/writer/producer Wieland Schulz-Keil. It premiered in the US on PBS in April 1981, and garnered critical acclaim and today, 40 years after its premiere, Corinth Films proudly presents the fascinating documentary digitally remastered from the 16MM negative. Narrated by the iconic Orson Welles, THE NEW DEAL FOR ARTISTS, also features a who’s who of 20th Century luminaries including Studs Terkel, John Houseman, Arthur Rothstein, Howard Da Silva, James Brooks, Nelson Algren and more.
