What’s the Alternative? Art and Outrage of the 1960s Underground Press

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August 24, 2018 to October 14, 2018

Opening Reception:  September 6, 2018, 4:30 – 7pm

Drawn exclusively from the Alternative Press Collection at the UConn Archives & Special Collections, What’s the Alternative? The Art and Outrage of the 1960s Underground Press  surveys the efforts of cartoonists, illustrators, photographers and painters to warn against public impassivity in the face of political oppression, war, systemic racism and censorship of free speech during the mid-twentieth century. The exhibition is guest curated by cartoonist Dwayne Booth (a.k.a. Mr. Fish).

The exhibition is a collaboration with Archives & Special Collections, UConn Library; Thomas J. Dodd Research Center; CLAS Dean’s Office, Humanities; Humanities Institute / Humility & Conviction in Public Life; Departments of History, English and Journalism; and the School of Fine Arts.

Image Credit: Sir Realist by John Francis Putnam, 1958.

PUBLIC PROGRAMS
FREE and open to the public. RSVP recommended: 860.486.4520 or email: benton@uconn.edu
Check our calendar for more information on these programs.

Film Screening
Tuesday, September 11, 6:30 – 8:30
Mr. Fish: Cartooning from the Deep End (2017) Running time: 70 min.
Followed by a Q&A with Dwayne Booth (aka Mr. Fish) and director Pablo Bryant If Dangerous Art Doesn’t Have A Place In Our World, Does A Dangerous Artist?
“A must see for anyone who cares about the world” -Unseenfilms.net
The film hit my heart and brain with such velocity that it literally made me sit on the edge of my seat.” -Ain’t It Cool News
Award winner of numerous film festivals. https://www.mrfishmovie.com/
Refreshments.

Tour & Workshop
Thursday, October 4, 4:30-6:30pm
Explore the trajectory of the alternative press from the 1960s to 2016 with Graham Stinnett, Archivist, Human Rights & Alternative Press Collections. Meet at the Benton for coffee and cookies, followed by a tour of What’s the Alternative? Workshop continues at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center.

Salon at The Benton: Art and Conversation
Dangerous Art and Censorship
Friday, October 12, 5:00-7:00pm
Panelists: Dwayne Booth (aka Mr. Fish), cartoonist; Molly Land, Professor of Law; and Christopher Vials, Associate Professor of English and Director of American Studies.
Moderator: Brendan Kane, Associate Professor of History and Assistant Director, Public Humanities, UConn Humanities Institute.