JOSEPH HIRSCH (AMERICAN, 1910-1981), BANQUET, 1945, LITHOGRAPH ON BEIGE WOVE PAPER, GIFT OF CHRISTOPHER RUSSELL AT PORTLAND ART MUSEUM, 2015.21.1
In 1941, a typist in Billings, Montana, might see an ad in the back of Arts Digest shouting, “Now you too can own American masterpieces, such as the great Museums select for their permanent collections, at $5 each.” The typist could send away for a catalogue, receive a pamphlet from the Associated American Artists with dozens of etchings to choose from, and then select an original, signed lithograph for five bucks (with a frame for $2 extra). Almost 80 years later, these prints are indeed in museums around the country. The Portland Art Museum (PAM) has over 200 in its collection and has curated around 60 for the upcoming Associated American Artists: Prints for the People, which will open April 6 and run through August 18.