Arts Events: WITNESS AND WARRIORS, The Flint Sit-Down Strike of 1936-1937; AN AMERICAN DREAM: MoorMan Manufacturing/Adams County Agriculture

Source: Arts Wire CURRENT at Arts Wire

FLINT, MI
through July 2
The Greater Flint Arts Council

WITNESS AND WARRIORS: THE FLINT SIT-DOWN STRIKE OF 1936-1937

"When they tie the can to a union man,
Sit Down! Sit Down!
When they give him the sack they'll take him back,
Sit Down! Sit Down!
When the speed-up come, just twiddle your thumbs,
Sit Down!, Sit Down!
When the boss wont talk don't take a walk,
Sit Down! Sit Down!" - Maurice Sugar

The Greater Flint Arts Council is presenting WITNESS AND WARRIORS, a Mott Community College exhibition of portraits of sit-downers from the 1936 - 1937 Sit Down-Strike in Flint, Michigan.

32 artists worked with oral histories, pictures, and archival information to capture the essence of the Sit-Down Strike, which was the first strike in which sit-down tactics were used, and a critical event in the rise of the union movement in the U.S. The artists, who are residents or natives of the Flint area and are students, alumni or faculty of Mott Community College, created portraits of the sit-downers -- including paintings, drawings, and prints, nine sculptures and one relief.

Biographical information about the sit-downers who are portrayed is exhibited side by along side of each work of art, and the Opening Night reception featured songs from the Flint Sit-Down Strike era. A book has been produced and is available for purchase.

For more information, call 810-238-ARTS

Source:

GREATER FLINT ARTS COUNCIL (GFAC) WEB SITE -- http://www.gfn.org/gfac/

QUINCY, IL
thru December
Quincy Museum, 1601 Maine

AN AMERICAN DREAM:
THE STORY OF MOORMAN MANUFACTURING COMPANY AND ADAMS COUNTY AGRICULTURE
documents MoorMan, which has made livestock feed and supplement products since 1885. As part or the exhibition ongoing events at the Quincy Museum -- such as "Memories of the American Farm" which asked those attending to bring their farm memories to the program -- also document life on the family farm.

The exhibition features many artifacts from the company's history -- including the legendary MoorMan jug. As the story goes, in 1951 MoorMan field training Manager Walt Teach grew impatient when a recently built erosion control lake didn't fill with water. For almost a year, Teach hand carried water to the lake in a brown jug until slowly the lake began to rise. Later, as a result of a sales campaign which featured the jug more than 5000 jars of water arrived in Quincy from all over the world.

For more information about the exhibition, call 217-244-7669

Source:

Kim Goerlich
"Quincy Museum An American Dream! The MoorMan Jug, An Emblem of Perseverance"
ARTS/QUINCY
May 1999

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