In the history of American art, a particular moment stands out as crucial to the discovery and embrace of folk artists. After World War I, the Great Depression and subsequent years saw a new wave of art made by people without academic training, often without even the means to buy traditional art supplies. Gatecrashers: The Rise Of The Self-Taught Artist In America is the new exhibition at Atlanta’s High Museum collecting works from this period. Katie Jentleson is the museum’s Curator of Folk and Self-Taught Art whose book (of the same name) explores the important role American self-taught artists played throughout the 20th century. Jentleson joined “City Lights” host Lois Reitzes to talk about the lives of the untrained artists that make up the collection, and their influence on art culture then and now.
Interview highlights:
The Depression-era embrace of folk artists:
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