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'The Muralist' Demonstrates the Power of Great Art Over Time

bashapirobooks.com
/
Algonquin Books

History and present day has shown that America's anti-immigrant attitudes come and go in cycles. One major period in history where discrimination and fear was very present includes the plight of Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazi regime during World War II. This period was not only a major one for American foreign policy, but the birth of a new art movement: abstract expressionism.

The Muralist, the newest book by B.A. Shapiro, skillfully weaves the very real isolationist and anti-Semitic sentiments of some at that time with art and present day characters discovering an untold story.

The book follows Alizée Benoit, an American painter working for the Works Progress Administration, who mysteriously vanishes in New York City in 1940 amid personal and political turmoil. Seventy years later, her great niece discovers some of Benoit's enigmatic paintings hidden behind recently found works by those now famous abstract expressionist artists.

"That was the challenge for this book, could I have fictional characters interacting with actual historical figures and make it seem real," says Shapiro.

For Shapiro, the best way to tell the lesser known story of the WPA and the people involved was to make the art a common denominator. "You can use art to touch people in a way that just looking at the newsreel or a protest can't, because art can get inside your heart," she says.

 

Bonnie North
Bonnie joined WUWM in March 2006 as the Arts Producer of the locally produced weekday magazine program Lake Effect.