Art Deco August General Release
Media Contact: Pete McKeeman
541-961-8203 pete@citycenternewport.com
(Newport, Oregon) – “Art Deco August” will spotlight and celebrate the appreciation of
Newport’s art deco heritage throughout the final month of summer – presented by the
City Center Newport Association, the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts and the City of
Newport.
The August celebration is aimed at increasing public awareness of the art deco era in a
series of fun, entertaining and educational events for all ages. A grant from the City of
Newport’s Tourism Event Startup fund is helping to fund this way to attract visitors from
throughout Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.
The Oregon Coast has a special history of art deco style due to the six major bridges built
by Conde B. McCullough in the late 1930s. These bridges did more than open the door
to modern transportation, they left a unique art deco legacy on the coast. As the new
highway-oriented culture took root, the modern progressive design of the bridges affected
new construction in places like Newport’s City Center business district. This resulted in a
distinct pocket of art deco style, one with its own unique history and culture.
EVENT SUMMARIES:
THE ART OF DECO is a month long exhibition running from August 1 - 30 at the
Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). The exhibition will show
how the art deco design aesthetic was so pervasive that it influenced not just architecture,
but people’s clothing, means of travel, work and the way they spent their free time.
The ART DECO FILM FESTIVAL runs August 8 - 9 at the Newport Performing Arts
Center (777 W. Olive Street, Newport). The art deco era was the first time in history
where the movies and the medium of film served as a force in the popular culture of the
day. The festival will feature eight different programs.
WHEN RADIO WAS KING! will recreate the “Golden Age of Radio” with live staged
performances of classic radio plays August 22 - 23 at the Newport Visual Arts Center
(777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). The performances will feature some of the best local
actors complete with sound effects and music.
Art Deco August will also feature a weekly series of Educational Lectures, Guided Walks
and more. Event admission prices range from free for the exhibits and walks to $12 for
the 30s Movie Palace Experience.
The City Center Newport Association is a 501(c)(3) non profit corporation and is
registered with the Oregon Cultural Trust. Visit www.citycenternewport.com. Info line
541-574-6530
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
August 1 – 30. The ART of DECO, an exhibition of art deco furniture, fashion, ceramics
and collectibles illustrating how art deco influenced the popular culture. Runyon Gallery,
Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). Tue – Sun, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Free Admission.
August 1 – 30. RETRO DECO, an exhibition of modern day works in the art deco style.
Upstairs Gallery, Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). Tue - Sat,
Noon – 4 p.m. Free Admission
Art Deco August Schedule of Events (not including the Exhibitions)
Friday, July 31. Exhibit Preview Benefit Gala 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. Newport Visual Arts
Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $25 per person, $40 per couple.
Saturday, August 1. Guided Walk: 10 a.m. Starts at Pig N’ Pancake 810 SW Alder St.
Free.
Saturday, August 1. Exhibit Grand Opening Reception 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Newport
Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, Free.
Saturday, August 1. Art Deco Lecture Series: The Life and Times of Erté 7:15 p.m.
Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Sunday, August 2. Art Deco Lecture Series: English Art Deco? The Dickens You Say!
3:00 p.m. Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per
couple.
Saturday, August 8. Guided Walk: 9 a.m. Starts at Pig N’ Pancake 810 SW Alder St.
Free.
Saturday, August 8. Art Deco Film Festival: Sampler of 1930s Saturday Afternoon Serial
Cliffhangers 12:50 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street All ages
$5 per person.
Saturday, August 8. Art Deco Film Festival: Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) A Busby
Berkeley extravaganza! 2:30 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street
Adults $9, CCNA Members, Seniors and Students with ID $8, under 13 $7.
Saturday, August 8. Art Deco Film Festival: Wife Vs. Secretary (1936) Clark Gable, Jean
Harlow & Myrna Loy in a comedic romp 4:50 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777
W. Olive Street Adults $9, CCNA Members, Seniors and Students with ID $8, under 13
$7.
Saturday, August 8. Art Deco Film Festival: The 30s Movie Palace Experience featuring
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow with Angelina Jolie, Jude Law & Gwyneth
Paltrow (set in 1939) 7 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street Adults
$12, CCNA Members, Seniors and Students with ID $10, under 13 $9.
Sunday, August 9. Art Deco Film Festival: Sampler of 1930s Classic Cartoons and Short
Subject Films 12:35 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street All ages
$5 per person.
Sunday, August 9. Art Deco Film Festival: Our Dancing Daughters (1928) Joan
Crawford’s film debut as a Jazz Baby of the roaring twenties. 2:35 p.m. Newport
Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street Adults $9, CCNA Members, Seniors and
Students with ID $8, under 13 $7.
Sunday, August 9. Art Deco Film Festival: The Rocketeer (set in 1938) A masked hero
battles evil forces in a whiz bang adventure. 4:30 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center
777 W. Olive Street Adults $9, CCNA Members, Seniors and Students with ID $8, under
13 $7.
Sunday, August 9. Art Deco Film Festival: The 30s Movie Palace Experience featuring
the 2002 digitally restored version of Metropolis with the original orchestral score (1927)
7:00 p.m. Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive Street Adults $12, CCNA
Members, Seniors and Students with ID $10, under 13 $9.
Saturday, August 15. Guided Walk: 10 a.m. Starts at Pig N’ Pancake 810 SW Alder St.
Free.
Saturday, August 15. Art Deco Lecture Series: The Deco Dandy 2:30 p.m. Newport
Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Saturday, August 15. Art Deco Lecture Series: Art Deco Fashion 4:00 p.m. Newport
Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Sunday, August 16. Art Deco Lecture Series: Art Deco Miami 2:30 p.m. Newport Visual
Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Sunday, August 16. Art Deco Lecture Series: The Art of Mac Harshberger 4:00 p.m.
Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Sunday, August 16. Art Deco Lecture Series: Deco Down Under-Art Deco Australia 7:00
p.m. Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Saturday, August 22. Guided Walk: 10 a.m. Starts at Pig N’ Pancake 810 SW Alder St.
Free.
Saturday, August 22. Art Deco Lecture Series: The Life and Times of Erté 3:00 p.m.
Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per couple.
Saturday, August 22. When Radio Was King! The “Tip Top Motors Theater” presents a
special live radio adaptation of The Philadelphia Story (1939) 7:00 p.m. Newport Visual
Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, All ages $5 per person.
Sunday, August 23. Art Deco Lecture Series: English Art Deco? The Dickens You Say!
3:00 p.m. Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per
couple.
Sunday, August 23. Art Deco Lecture Series: The Art Deco of the Oregon Coast Bridges
5:00 p.m. Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per
couple.
Sunday, August 23. When Radio Was King! The “Tip Top Motors Theater” presents a
special live radio adaptation of The Philadelphia Story (1939) 7:00 p.m. Newport Visual
Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, All ages $5 per person.
Saturday, August 29. Guided Walk: 10 a.m. Starts at Pig N’ Pancake 810 SW Alder St.
Free.
Saturday, August 29. Art Deco Lecture Series: Deco Down Under-Art Deco Australia
3:00 p.m. Newport Visual Arts Center, 777 NW Beach Drive, $3 per person, $5 per
couple.
www.citycenternewport.com. Info line 541-574-6530
Art of Deco Exhibit in Newport Throughout August
(Newport, Oregon) - The coastal town of Newport celebrates its art deco architecture and
history with “Art Deco August” – a month-long series of walks, lectures and a film
festival. It also includes a special exhibition: the “Art of Deco.”
The exhibition will include examples of furniture, fashion, jewelry, lighting, art,
appliances, and ephemera. There will also be a gallery devoted to ‘Retro Deco,’ which
will show examples by modern day artists who work in the art deco style. A weekly
lecture series will provide additional background and depth on a variety of related topics.
ART OF DECO DETAILS:
August 1 – 30. The ART of DECO, an exhibition of art deco furniture, fashion, ceramics
and collectibles illustrating how art deco influenced the popular culture. Runyon Gallery,
Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). Tue – Sun, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Free Admission.
August 1 – 30. RETRO DECO, an exhibition of modern day works in the art deco style.
Upstairs Gallery, Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). Tue - Sat,
Noon – 4 p.m. Free Admission.
Aug 1 – 29. ART DECO LECTURE SERIES, is an entertaining and educational series of
topics related to the period at the Newport Visual Arts Center, 2nd floor. August 1-2,
August 15-16, August 22-23, and August 29.
www.citycenternewport.com. Info line 541-574-6530
Art Deco was a unifying concept encompassing art, architecture, graphics, and industrial
design that influenced not just architecture, but people’s clothing, their means of travel,
work, and the way they spent their free time.
The Curator for the exhibition is Stephan, Artistic Consultant to Newport’s Deco District.
A Newport resident for several years, Stephan has served as Artist in Residence to the Art
Deco Society of California, a position he has held for over 25 years.
The event is being produced by the non-profit City Center Newport Association in
association with the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts and the City of Newport.
Supporting partners include Northwest area antique dealers and Art Deco Society
members from California, New York, Montreal, Paris, London and South Carolina.
Newport’s Art Deco Film Festival
(Newport, Oregon) – As part of “Art Deco August,” which spotlights Newport’s deco
architecture and history, the Art Deco Film Festival will showcase eight different
programs of classic movies from the 20’s and 30’s and more modern films set during the
era. The festival runs continuously over the weekend of August 8 - 9 at the Newport
Performing Arts Center (777 W. Olive Street, Newport). Tickets range from $5 - 12 at
the door. Info line 541-574-6530
Bigger and better than our previous nine stand-alone film series events, the festival offers
a much wider variety of art deco themed programming on a larger screen.
Schedule for Saturday, August 8
12:50 p.m. - Sampler of 1930’s Saturday afternoon serial cliffhangers: so bad they’re
good!
2:30 p.m. - Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) Busby Berkeley extravaganza with Joan
Blondell and Ruby Keeler.
4:50 p.m. - Wife Vs. Secretary (1936) Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and Myrna Loy. A
typical period situation comedy with the usual misunderstandings, plot contrivances, and
double entendres.
7 p.m. - The 1930’s Movie Palace Experience, featuring “Sky Captain & the World of
Tomorrow” (set in 1939)
Schedule for Sunday, August 9
12:35 p.m. - Sampler of 30’s classic cartoons and period short subjects
2:35 p.m. - Our Dancing Daughters (1929) Joan Crawford’s film debut as a ‘Jazz Baby’
of the roaring 20’s.
4:30 p.m. - The Rocketeer (set in 1938) Masked hero battles nefarious evil forces in a
whiz bang adventure.
7 p.m. - The 1930’s Movie Palace Experience featuring the 2003 digitally restored
version of Fritz Lang’s science fiction masterpiece Metropolis (1927)
The film festival is a fun way to increase public awareness of the art deco design
aesthetic and show the art deco influence on the popular culture. The 20’s and 30’s were
the first time where the movies and the medium of film served as a force in shaping the
culture of the day.
The eight festival programs include a whole show of so-bad-they’re-good cliff hanger
serials that were typical Saturday afternoon matinee fare, stand-alone screenings of silent
and sound era full length feature films and the full 1930s movie palace experience.
In a time when entertainment dollars really had to stretch, people escaped to the movie
palace. For the price of a single admission, movie goers enjoyed an entire evening of
entertainment where they could laugh, forget about the great depression, see the latest
fashions, catch up on the world news and glimpse exotic places and peoples far beyond
their own front porch. Each evening included a full program of cartoons, newsreels,
shorts, serial cliffhanger, coming attractions plus the feature film.
The festival will also feature educational displays, trivia and best-dressed contests, silent
auctions and more. A grant from the Lincoln County Cultural Coalition is enabling local
students to learn more about this unique period in our not-so-distant history.
Deco dress admired not required. Produced by the non-profit City Center Newport
Association, the event is a fundraiser for the ongoing effort to revitalize Newport’s art
deco heritage. Visit www.citycenternewport.com for lots more info, fashion tips, show
pricing and other details. Info line 541-574-6530
This activity is supported in part by a grant from the Oregon Cultural Trust, investing in
Oregon’s arts, humanities and heritage, and the Lincoln County Cultural Coalition.
Newport Celebrates Golden Age of Radio
(Newport, Oregon) – “When Radio Was King!” recreates the “Golden Age of Radio”
with live performances of classic radio plays from the 1930s. The event is at the
Newport Visual Arts Center (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport). 541-574-3333.
Saturday August 22 at 7 p.m.
Sunday August 23 at 7 p.m.
The “Tip Top Motors Theater” presents a special radio adaptation of The Philadelphia
Story (1939) Second floor of the Visual Arts Center. Admission is $5 at the door.
Live recreation of radio dramas is a fun way to increase public awareness of the popular
culture during the art deco era. Directed by local radio and theater maven Morgan
Locklear, the performances before a live audience will showcase some of the area’s best
local actors complete with sound effects.
A big part of the fun is immersing yourself in the culture by dressing in the style of the
day.
Deco dress is admired but not required.
The Golden Age of Radio refers to a period from the early 1920’s until television’s
replacement of radio as the dominant home entertainment in the late 1950’s. At its zenith,
live variety shows like the Texaco Star Theater were so popular that people scheduled
their entire lives around being in front of the radio when the program was broadcast live.
In the late 1920’s, the sponsored musical feature was the most popular program format.
Commercial messages were regarded as intrusive, so these shows often displayed the
sponsor’s name in the title. During the 1930’s and 1940’s, the leading orchestras were
heard often through big band remotes. Just like television programming, radio
entertainment ran the gamut from comedies to mysteries, dramas, serials and game
shows.
Presented by the non-profit City Center Newport Association, the event is a fundraiser for
the ongoing effort to revitalize Newport’s unique art deco heritage. For details, fashion
tips and more please visit www.citycenternewport.com. Info line 541-574-6530