Hotbed on View November 3, 2017 – March 25, 2018
Hotbed On view November 3, 2017 – March 25, 2018 Selected PR Images Hotbed explores the vibrant early 20th-century political and artistic scene of Greenwich Village, where men and women joined forces across the boundaries of class and race to fight for a better world. At the heart of the downtown radicals’ crusade lay women’s rights: to control their own bodies, to do meaningful work, and above all, to vote. Immersive installations and more than 100 artifacts and images—drawn from New-York Historical’s archives and several private collections—bring to life the bohemian scene and its energetic activist spirit. “Creates Sensation with Suffrage Plea Painted On Her Pretty Back” The Topeka State Journal, November 6, 1915 Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, Library of Congress Suffragists deployed many creative strategies to draw attention to their cause, including breaking convention to use their own bodies as signs. These stunts were designed to be widely seen, photographed, and discussed—to “go viral,” 1910s-style. Jessie Tarbox Beals (1870–1942) Patchin Place, ca. 1917 New-York Historical Society Library, Jessie Tarbox Beals Collection The allure of Greenwich Village lay in its cluster of tea rooms, restaurants, bookstores, art studios, and galleries, many of which were run by women. Jessie Tarbox Beals, the country’s first female photojournalist, moved to the area in 1917 and became a tireless promoter of its picturesque streets, businesses, and local characters. Jessie Tarbox Beals (1870–1942) Grace Godwin Spaghetti Dinner, ca. 1917 Gelatin silver print New-York Historical Society Library, Jessie Tarbox Beals Collection Grace Godwin’s restaurant Garret, on Washington Square South, was a typical bohemian establishment where men and women dined together in casual, candle-lit surroundings.
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