About this Event
In 1934, while working for the federal government’s Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), artist Paul Cadmus painted a satiric view of rowdy sailors on shore leave in a New York City park. The painting, entitled The Fleet’s In!, was chosen for a special exhibit of works by New Deal painters, and was on a test view at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The painting made national news as it became the center of a debate about government censorship and the morals of American military men. The work was subsequently removed from public exhibition and confiscated—labeled as lewd and immoral, and placed the Navy in a salacious light. It remained out of public view until eventually the Navy took ownership of the work—making it an official part of its art collection.
Cadmus briefly mentions the controversy over his painting in the documentary film, Paul Cadmus: Enfant Terrible at 80 (1984). Director David Sutherland’s film is an intimate portrait of a fine artist narrated in his own words and reflects on his body of work, mastery of the egg tempera medium, and on being a gay man in mid-20th century America.
After the film screening, Sutherland joins Navy Art Collection Curator Pam Overmann for an audience Q&A and a deeper dive into The Fleet’s In!. A full-scale reproduction of the original painting will be on display for audiences to see. This program is a collaboration with DC Public Library and The Navy Art Collection.
About the Speakers:
David Sutherland is an independent filmmaker focused on creating documentary portraits. His films include Kind Hearted Woman, Country Boys, The Farmer's Wife, Out of Sight, Paul Cadmus: Enfant Terrible at 80, Semper Fidelis, and Marcos Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Active since 1984, he has won over 100 international awards and citations for his films.
Pam Overmann has been a curator with the Navy Art Collection for over ten years. The Collection, which is located on the Washington Navy Yard, was established in 1987 and is the repository for most of the U.S. Navy’s historic art collection—including the Paul Cadmus painting, The Fleet’s In! The painting has become the most noteworthy artwork within the collection and is often loaned to domestic and international museums.
About the Navy Art Collection. The Navy Art Collection is a branch of the Naval History and Heritage Command, Department of the Navy. It is a museum collection comprised of nearly 20,000 paintings, drawings, prints, and sculpture owned by the Department of the Navy. It was created in its current form in 1987 when the Combat Art Collection, founded in 1941, was transferred from the Chief of Information and merged with the then Naval Historical Center’s historic art collection, began as part of the Navy Department Library in 1800.
The Navy Art Collection is a collection of national significance, custodian of some of the most well-known and loved images of U.S. Navy history. Its purpose is to document the history and goals of the United States Navy and educate naval personnel and the general public in those topics. Sending out traveling exhibits, placing virtual exhibits on the internet, and making images of the collection available to the media, educational ventures, service members, and the general public accomplish this.
Note: This program will be held at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library and represents the museum's commitment to offering free offsite public programs to the diverse communities it serves. The address for the library is 901 G St NW, Washington, DC.
Image above: The Fleet’s In!, painting, tempera on canvas, Paul Cadmus, 1934, Framed Dimensions 37H X 67W. Permanent Collection, Navy Art Collection, Naval History and Heritage Command, Washington, DC
Register for this program through Eventbrite or email Paul Perry at [email protected]
David Sutherland will be on hand at the MLK Library to answer your questions about his documentary on the late artist, Paul Cadmus. Cadmus' work is in the collection of the National Gallery, Washington, DC, The Smithsonian's National Museum of American Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, among others.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G Street Northwest, Washington, United States
USD 0.00