What’s New
The 2024 John Commerford Labor Education Awards were held December 5, honoring labor activist and SAG-AFTRA leader Rebecca Damon and Washington Post labor reporter Lauren Kaori Gurley. Video of the event is available here and the program is available here.
Bernhardt Labor Journalism Forum – Read more about the forum here. Video from the October 17th event available here.
The 2024 Clara Lemlich Awards were held on May 13th at the Museum of the City of New York. View the video of the event here. Learn more and view the exhibit featuring video interviews with the 2024 honorees here.
Memory in Cloth – Safety and Solidarity for New York City Garment Workers — This LaborArts pop-up exhibit was on view at NYU’s Tamiment Library during fall 2023. Visit the online version of the exhibit here.
Making Work Visible Awards
Celebrate the CUNY undergraduates whose outstanding work in non-fiction, fiction, poetry and visual art won the prizes for 2023. View the students’ art and writing here.
RECENT EXHIBITS
We Are One – The 1982 Chinatown Garment Workers Strike with photos, videos and additional resources.
Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary paperback edition of the Bernhardt and Bernstein book Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives, A Pictorial History of Workers in New York City.
CALLING UP HENRY celebrated the life of our good friend and cherished colleague Henry Foner. Find recordings of Henry singing some of his songs in our Thursdays TiIl Nine and Play it Again, Sam exhibits, and information about his book of verse here.
Remembering Ralph Fasanella – featuring twelve remarkable paintings by this socially engaged artist who was often called an “artist of the people.”
Meet Us in St. Louis – A collection of Labor Art from around the country and across the century. Start with the image of the week and add your observations.
On Equal Terms – Women in trades, 35 years and still…. Poetry and mixed media by artist and electrician Susan Eisenberg.
Defending the Social Safety Net
For Better or Verse — video and audio of Henry Foner singing songs from the new book.
Women Firefighters in New York City
FEATURED EXHIBITS
Labor Art from St. Louis features highlights from the Feldacker collection of paintings, prints, drawings and sculpture on the theme of work and workers.
Why Unions — Art from the National Maritime Union features graphic art from the 1940s by Harold Price, Rockwell Kent and William Gropper
Landscape of Lost Arts Vanished Structures and Forgotten Skills — Janet Wells Greene curates images of artisans and union craftsmen building and rebuilding the NYC skyline
We Love A Parade Union Banners Then and Now — featuring four labor banners from the 19th century and 27 banners from the twentieth century NYC garment industry
Sisters in the Brotherhoods — Jane Latour interviews women who were pioneers in skilled blue-collar jobs
The ILGWU: Social Unionism in Action — garment union initiatives in organizing, immigration, civil rights, health care and culture
Don’t forget — we need your support to continue this work.