STARRED REVIEW: KIRKUS
*Americans Who Tell The Truth Author: Shetterly, Robert
Publication: Kirkus Reviews May 15th issue
In tribute to this country’s proud tradition of protest, fine artist Shetterly has chosen 50 Americans who have stood up for what he calls “the promise of America,” presenting them in a series of accurately painted head-and-shoulder portraits with their names and a pithy quote scratched in. His selections, equally divided between men and women, range from such usual suspects as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Elizabeth Cady Stanton to the less-familiar likes of child peace activist Samantha Smith, political columnist Molly Ivins, authors Frances Moore Lappe (Diet for a Small Planet) and Jonathan Kozol, plus controversial figures such as Emma Goldman and Dwight Eisenhower, the telling quotes are reprinted in the margins to make them more legible. Opening with an eloquent general statement of purpose, and closing with biographical comments on each entry, this gallery of writers, politicians, rabble-rousers, troublemakers, scientists, celebrities and activists will have a stirring cumulative effect, even on children unacquainted with many of their causes or accomplishments.
The first national exposure for Rob Shetterly's Truth Tellers came in the July/August 2003 issue of "Zion's Herald," which included a special section on "Americans Who Tell The Truth." Featured on the cover of that publication were high quality reproductions of Rob's portraits of Wendell Berry, Rosa Parks and Emma Goldman. The section itself included full page portraits of Martin Luther King, Jr; Mark Twain, and Rachel Carson, and a collage of the portraits of Cesar Chavez, Dorothea Lange, and W.E.B. Du Bois.
"Americans Who Tell the Truth" was the subject of an extensive article in the Feb 15, 2003 edition of the Bangor (Maine) Daily News.
Rob Shetterly's "Americans Who Tell The Truth" was the subject of an informative and beautifully illustrated article in the November 2003 issue of "Hope" magazine (www.hopemag.com). The article already has generated numerous inquiries which we expect will lead to showings of the travelling exhibit in a variety of venues around the country.
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