Brought an Appreciation of the Fine Arts to the Kennedy Administration
Novelist William Faulkner, in 1958, speaking earlier the American University of Arts and Letters: "The artist has no more than actual place in the American culture of today than he has in the American economy of today, no identify at all in… the mosaic of the American dream."
The Kennedys, however, made the arts part of their life in the White House. JFK enjoyed literature and poetry, specially the work of the Romantic era English poet Lord Byron and the American Robert Frost. Jacqueline Kennedy loved poetry as well and was as well deeply committed to both music and the visual arts. In that location is little evidence that JFK was particularly sophisticated about the arts. He read widely, only never considered himself an intellectual or an original thinker. His musical tastes ran to Broadway show tunes and Irish ballads rather than Mozart or Beethoven. In one case, when asked about the president's gustatory modality in music, the first lady replied that his favorite piece was "Hail to the Master."
Yet, JFK did understand the importance of what Theodore Roosevelt had called the 'bully pulpit,' and was convinced that it was essential for the president to demonstrate a regard for and recognition of cultural and intellectual excellence. Every bit a effect, Kennedy eagerly accepted the thought of inviting Robert Frost to read a poem at the Inauguration and as well agreed to invite more than than fifty other writers, painters, poets and musicians to the ceremonies.
At an Apr 1962 White House dinner for Nobel Prize winners, Kennedy delighted his distinguished guests by calling them "the nigh boggling collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."
The Kennedys' support for the arts extended across contemporary artists to the next generation of Americans and included, for example, a serial of "Concerts for Immature People" at the White Business firm sponsored by the outset lady to encourage the report and performance of music by America's youth.
The Role of the Arts in America
The following calendar month, in honor of French Minister of Culture André Malraux'due south visit to the White House, the Kennedys hosted a dinner attended by many of the nation's leading artists, writers and musicians. In doing and so, they hoped to focus national attention on the role of the arts in America and encourage the development of Washington as a cultural center. In his toast, President Kennedy affirmed that, "creativity is the hardest work there is" and playfully added that the White House "was becoming a sort of eating identify for artists. But, they never enquire united states out."
Malraux famously honored the president and first lady by promising Mrs. Kennedy at the stop of the dinner that he would ship to her France's almost famous cultural treasure,La Giaconda, theMona Lisa. In Dec 1962, a special loan was made direct to the President of the United states and the American people past the regime of the French Republic. Malraux accompanied the painting to the U.s. where more than 700,000 people saw it at the National Gallery of Fine art and more than a million others viewed it at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. President Kennedy expressed his appreciation for the loan and stated that, "We will proceed to press ahead to develop an contained artistic force and power of our own."
In the spring of 1962, JFK created the position of Special Consultant on the Arts. He recognized that the role of the federal government in the arts was historically and constitutionally limited, only still wanted to have admission to advice in those areas where public policy had an artistic dimension—such every bit in the design of public buildings.
Arts in Architecture
In May of that year, he strongly endorsed a written report on Federal compages emphasizing that the design of new buildings should provide "visual testimony to the nobility, enterprise, vigor, and stability of the American government." The report, which introducedThe Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture, also stated that "...where appropriate, fine art should be incorporated in the designs [of Federal buildings], with accent on the piece of work of living American artists." The Full general Services Administration Art in Compages Programme was and so established to commission American artists to integrate their creative contributions in meaningful ways with an as vibrant federal architecture.
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Source: https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/jfk-in-history/arts-and-culture-in-the-kennedy-white-house
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