The People's Art Guild and the Forward Exhibition of 1917.

In this article, the author looks back at the Forward Exhibition of American modernist art held in May 1917 in the Lower East Side neighborhood of New York City. More specifically, the author examines the role played by the exhibition's organizer, the People's Art Guild, in its attempt to bring the latest art movements to working-class immigrants. A brief history of the guild, which was founded by the educator and art critic John Weichsel in 1915, is presented. The author argues that Weichsel and the People's Art Guild not only sought to bring modern art to the people but also attempted to revolutionize the relationship between artists and the public.