KENT, Conn.—Kent is joining with many other towns and cities from around the country to celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary and included in Kent’s celebration will be several “Americans Who Tell the Truth” (AWTT) related events planned for June 17 to July 15.
“Americans Who Tell the Truth,” a series of 300 portraits created by artist Robert Shetterly, has been termed, “an astonishing collection of … portraits of defenders of the American ideals of ‘liberty and justice for all.’”
Shetterly’s portraits of American truth-tellers are painted on wood panels, using brushes, palette knives and his fingers to complete each painting and a dental pick to etch the quote into the surface. The portraits invite viewers to ponder a person, their words, the issues that inspire their life’s journey, work, activism and imagination, and encourage viewers to contemplate what it means to be an American citizen.
The Kent exhibit will include 10 freestanding replicas of AWTT portraits that will be displayed on Main Street’s Golden Falcon Field, with accompanying biographies of each subject.
This outdoor exhibit is free to all and is sponsored by Americans Who Tell The Truth, a 501 (c)3. The non-profit has sprung up around Shetterly’s work and among the many services it provides are free lesson plans and other educational programs to encourage students (at all levels of schooling) to act for the common good, while deepening their knowledge and understanding of past and current events.
On July 11, The Kent Memorial Library will offer a free screening of “Truth Tellers,” an award-winning documentary about Shetterly’s portrait series. Good Gallery, 23 South Main Street, and Housatonic Fine Art and Framing, 18 Route 7 in Cornwall Bridge, will each have giclée copies of some of Shetterly’s portraits on display and for sale before and after the screening.
The House of Books will also have several copies of the coffee table-size book, “Americans Who Tell the Truth,” which contains reproductions of the portraits and biographies of the subjects.
Those interested in a particular subset of activism can filter the portraits by any one of 23 filters—civil rights, environmental issues, food and health, LGBTQIA+ and more.
All events are free of charge, with those inspired to do so able to make online donations to AWTT.