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Social Realism in Hispanic Art and Film

by Roz Hertz

Like so many of our talented instructors, Harold Cannon has combined his profound knowledge with his passion for art. Professor emeritus from CSULB, he taught Spanish in the department of Romance, German, Russian Languages and Literatures for 39 years. After his retirement, he joined the Long Beach Museum of Latin American Art (MOLA) where he has been a docent for nine years. During tours of themuseum he has explained and taught the works of 2 artists each year. While at CSULB he taught an art supplemental course in literature and methods.
This experience has taught him that knowledge combined with vision is unforgetable; therefore, he is going to teach SOCIAL REALISM IN HISPANIC ART AND FILM using videos showing the art in context, followed by discussion of the artists and their political philosophies.
Included will be neo-realism from Italy, surrealism, the combination of the two, and even impressionism. You will be surprised to learn new
information about Degas. Did you know that his dancers were really factory workers? This may lead us to ask, what is social realism? As defined by the World Encyclopedia: “State policy on the arts, promoted by the Soviet Union from the 1930s to the 1980s. It asserted that all the arts should appeal to ordinary workers and should be inspiring and optimistic in spirit. Art that did not fulfi ll these precepts was effectively banned….”
In America, Social Realism in paintings was an expressionistic protest, depicting the despondent realities of 20th century city life, as exemplified by art during the Great Depression.
So many of us have been exposed to European art since the Italian Renaissance is a part of world history taught in high schools or university classes. How many of us have had the opportunity to learn about Latin American art?
It has been said that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” You will see the art films first, followed by discussion about the artists and their political philosophies.
Fill in your cultural gap, or if you’re already familiar with this subject, be a parti cipant and contribute to the class. Enjoy!

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