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Hundreds of artists and cultural workers have signed a letter encouraging the Jewish Museum in New York City to take a leading role in salvaging the Wilbur J. Cohen Building in Washington, DC, which houses a trove of New Deal-era murals including works by Jewish artists Ben Shahn, Philip Guston, and Seymour Fogel.
The letter co-authored by artists Elise Engler, Joyce Kozloff, and Martha Rosler, reproduced in full at the end of this article, urges the museum and the larger arts community to “speak now on behalf of our artist predecessors” as Trump officials move to expedite the sale of the Cohen Building and, activists fear, demolish it altogether.
The Stripped Classicist behemoth anchored just across the National Mall, completed in 1940 as the Social Security Administration’s headquarters, now houses the offices of Voice of America and the US Agency for Global Media, both of which Trump has dismantled.
Inside and outside the building, murals by Guston, Shahn, Fogel, and sisters Ethel and Jenne Magafan, among other prominent names, stand as a poignant testament to the life-sustaining promise of a social safety net. The works, many painted or carved directly into the structure, portray mothers holding their babies, unemployed laborers, an elderly couple, and an unhoused child sleeping in the street — just some of the populations that benefited from the Social Security Act, passed in August 1935 as part of the New Deal program.
While several petitions in support of the building and articles about its relevance are already circulating widely, Engler, Kozloff, and Rosler believe that the Jewish Museum, with its recent major exhibitions of Shahn and Guston, is well-positioned to take a public and authoritative stance on the issue — and inspire other institutions to follow suit.
The missive was sent on January 9 to the museum’s Director James Snyder and Board Chair Shari Aronson, both of whom expressed their support, the letter’s co-authors said.
In a statement shared with Hyperallergic, Snyder said the Jewish Museum is “deeply committed to the stewardship of art and architecture as part of our shared cultural legacies.”
“We have been attentive to this issue since it emerged and responded wholeheartedly when we were approached by Elise Engler, Martha Rosler, and Joyce Kozloff to help support the preservation of the murals,” Snyder said. “We are standing with other art world leaders, artists, and preservationists in advocating for the protection and preservation of these historic murals and are continuing to investigate further strategies to ensure their safekeeping.”
Among the more than 380 signatories so far are artist Joan Semmel, whose paintings are currently on view at the museum, and Jenne M. Currie, the daughter of Ethel Magafan — whose oil landscape “Mountains in Snow” (c. 1942), created with her identical twin sister Jenne, hangs in the Cohen Building’s boardroom.
Engler told Hyperallergic she had been reading about the murals ahead of a December trip to Washington to visit her brother, who was a federal appointee during the Obama administration. She described peeking through the Mall-facing windows to catch a glimpse of the building’s interior murals, as entry is accessible only to those with a government ID.
Later, she recalled thinking that an ideal repurposing of the building would be as a museum dedicated to the history and enduring relevance of the New Deal; no such institution exists.
Amid the torrent of chilling news headlines — from escalating violence against immigrants in Minnesota and nationwide to Trump’s dismantling of the geopolitical order — the fight to save a building and its paintings may seem removed from more urgent realities. But research shows that the destruction of cultural heritage is directly linked to human rights violations. It is hardly surprising that the Trump administration, whose policies put millions of Americans at risk of losing essential services like disability insurance and child care funding, is targeting a monument to social assistance.
Engler, Kozloff, and Rosler told Hyperallergic they hope their efforts can be part of a broader effort to counter historical erasure.
“We are overwhelmed and horrified by the news every day, but this was something we could do as artists: speak out about our heritage, our legacy, and invite other artists to join us,” the letter’s authors said.
The letter is reproduced in full below. Those who wish to add their signatures can do so here.
Dear Chair Aronson:
This letter is in regard to the likely demolition of a federal building that contains important historical murals. At least three of the artists whose work is in this building were Jewish — two of whom, Ben Shahn and Philip Guston, are not only canonical artists but integral to the Jewish Museum. We are sending you this letter with attached signatures because we believe that a response from your institution, with its remarkable history and prestige, would have a powerful impact on the decision-making process.
The Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building, located just off the mall in Washington, DC, is referred to as the Sistine Chapel of the New Deal for these notable murals. The Trump administration is preparing to sell this building along with three others to private contractors, which will almost certainly guarantee its demolition. The building was meant initially to house the Social Security Administration but never served in that capacity; instead, it housed the Voice of America, now defunded by the current administration.
The building is closed to the public, but until recently, visitors could tour its many historic murals. Elise Engler tried to enter the building for that purpose in mid-December but was told by security that special permission from the Government Services Administration (GSA) was required. In a recent post sounding the alarm about the building, the Architect’s Newspaper wrote: “These works, in addition to sculptural reliefs, most chemically bound or carved into the walls, offer powerful reflections on the meaning of Social Security to working Americans. The artworks are therefore difficult if not impossible to remove.”
Time, however, is of the essence in speaking up for this building and saving it from the wrecking ball. A recently retired GSA official told a Washington, DC, federal court in early December that the White House is taking steps to bypass or circumvent the GSA process for four federal buildings on the “accelerated disposals” list, which includes the Cohen Building.
The White House has shown its proclivity for acting without regard to well-established rules, not least in its destruction of the East Wing of the White House itself. In counseling haste, we are mindful of the fate of New York’s Bonwit Teller limestone relief panels and bronze latticework, which Donald Trump, as developer, pledged to save and donate to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, but in fact made no attempt to do so. In demolishing that building to make way for the Trump Tower, he instead made sure they were smashed.
The United States has a woeful record of respecting, preserving, and restoring its public art, especially compared with older and less wealthy countries. As visual artists, we stand in solidarity with the musicians, dancers, and actors who have refused to perform at the Kennedy Center. We must speak now on behalf of our artist predecessors.
Since the Jewish Museum hosted both Ben Shahn: On Nonconformity and Draw Them In, Paint Them Out: Trenton Doyle Hancock Confronts Philip Guston in the past year, and your curators have been circulating an active online petition, we’d like to ask you to join in calling for a halt to the sale and destruction of this landmark building and its inspirational art.
We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Elise Engler
Joyce Kozloff
Martha Rosler
In addition, we have collected the following signatures from visual artists and members of the visual arts community:
Jenne M Currie
Joan Semmel
Kathy Shorr
Shimon Attie
Rochelle Feinstein
Joan Snyder
Dennis Kardon
Leslie Tonkonow
Klaus Ottmann
Tamara Gayer
Deborah Freedman
Julia Kunin
Nina Yankowitz
Robert Kushner
Elizabeth Hess
Nancy Rosen
Renée Petropoulos
Peter Gallo
Gail Gregg
Valerie McKenzie
Elizabeth Duffy
Pat Oleszko
Antonia Perez
Saul Ostrow
Shari Mendelsohn
Oriane Stender
Sue Coe
Donna Harkavy
Christopher Lyon
Judith Page
Charles Yuen
Lenore Malen
Elyn Zimmerman
Andrea Belag
Morgan Levy
Deborah Irmas
Debra Pearlman
Adele Eisenstein
Nell Painter
Rick Briggs
Judith Bernstein
Chris Martin
Ellen Driscoll
Eunice Lipton
Ken Aptekar
Rita Valencia
Sheila Pinkel
Sharon Barnes
Jane Kallir
Faye Duftler
Mary Schiliro
Carrie Rickey
Dan Zeller
Andrew Ginzel
Harley Spiller
Lawrence Dobens
Micki Spiller
Nancy Cohen
Stephen F Eisenman
Stanley Greenberg
Jeanne Heifetz
Tamar Zinn
Nancy Grossman
JJ Murphy
Nancy Mladenhoff
Charles Traub
Emily Berger
Charles Ramsburg
Grace GraupePillard
Deborah Schwartz
Carol Diamond
Michele Zackheim
Rifka Milder
Jacquelene Acevedo
Deborah Freedman
Linda Gottesfeld
Susan Hamburger
Andrew Ingall
Liz Jaff
Olive Ayhens
Jessica Deane Rosner
Kylie Heidenheimer
Gilah Yelin Hirsch
Barbara Pollack
Robert Cozzolino
Sandra Bloodworth
Franklin Evans
Marina Cappelletto
Lucy R Lippard
Nina Felshin
Betsy Damon
George de Castro Day
Margaret Crimmins
Daniel Bozhkov
Alice Arnold
Fran Ledonio Flaherty
Ellen Brooks
Ann Messner
Kim Manfredi
Carey Lovelace
Jaynie Gillman Crimmins
Tom Klem
Emily Kiacz
Angela Ellsworth
Joanne Carson
Nils Karsten
Maria Elena Buszek
David McCarthy
Cynthia Carlson
Myrel Chernick
Jennifer Dowley
Sue Heinemann
Jenny Lynn McNutt
Emily Fuller
Susan Greenstein
Theresa Hackett
Chris Duncan
Donelle Estey
Leslie Kirby
Robin Holder
Lilly Wei
Carol Duncan
Siobhan McClure
Diana Kurz
Karen Bell
Jill Moser
Lee Boroson
Suzanne Anker
Ann Agee
Gail Levin
Sandra Phillips
Richard J Haas
Katherine Sokolnikoff
Michael Brenson
Ken Buhler
Harmony Hammond
Roberta Allen
Lynn Cazabon
Gary Petersen
Cris Gianakos
Barbara Knight
Jimmy Wright
Rosemary Wright
Carol Saft
Buzz Spector
Sheila Pepe
Maddy Rosenberg
James Wagner
Barry Hoggard
Donna Ruff
Julie Heffernan
Robin White Owen
Robin Tewes
Susanne Slavick
Andrew Ellis Johnson
Alexi Worth
Theodora Skipitares
Rebecca Welz
Sarah Walker
Buzz Spector
Suzanne Lacy
Peggy Phelan
Linda Stein
Elisa Turner
Solange Roberdeau
Elisa Darrigo
Deborah Pohl
Norma Markley
Ellen Harvey
Margaret Murphy
Naomi Fisher
Marshall Reese
Gelah Penn
Pam White
Mary Lum
Carla Lobmier
Barbara Ungar
Lisa Taliano
Jean Blackwell Font
Ron Anteroinen
Ruth Marten
Margrit Lewczuk
Bill Jensen
Andrew Hemingway
Martha Edelheit
Dominique Nahas
Margaret Evangeline
Anne Healy
Jerilea Zempel
Maxi Cohen
Joan Waltemath
Power Boothe
Barbara Young
Claire Rosenfeld
Melissa Brown
Erika Rothenberg
Marina Pacini
Elaine Hood
George H Waterman III
Caroline Parker
Patricia Hills
Perry Meigs
MaryKay Lombino
John Murphy
Sally Apfelbaum
Myrel Chernick
Mimi Smith
Nicola Ginzel
Glenn Adamson
Lilly Taylor
Kristin Jones
Douglas Kent Walla
Kay Walkingstick
Susan Crile
Karen Marston
Polly Apfelbaum
Stan Allen
Brian Arnold
Julie Lemberger
Jeanette Lee
Robin Feld
Sutapa Biswas
Meg Hitchcock
Alice Garik
Carol Salmanson
Marina Adams
James Lawton
Ellen Brooks
Judith Brodsky
Harmony Hammond
Elaine Angelopoulos
Mary Filippo
Phil DiSantisElisa Gardella
Pam White
Nancy Cohen
Laura Halsey Brown
Joshua Harrison
Lisa Lewenz
Mary Billyou
Howard Singerman
Judith Rodenbeck
David Reisman
Shelly Silver
Frances Jetter
Julian Jackson
Barbara Friedman
Tracy Calvin
Gordon Feary
ArnoldBrooks
Brad Melamed
Marjorie VanDyke
Claire Seidel
Lawrence Swan
Don Muchow
Margaret Neil
Barbara Smolen
Marthe Keller
Karen Schifano
Beth Dary
Rene Lynch
Michael Gormley
Katherine Jackson
Steve Buckley
Blake O’Brien
Judith E Stein
Jonathan Stein
Matiala Smithson
Jeff Gates
Linda Schrank
Melissa Eder
Dena Sturm
Ellen Kozak
Maria de Los Angeles
Chris Costan
John Carson
Linda Vigdor
Adrienne Moumin
Susan Chevlowe
Steven Nelson
Cynthia Beth Rubin
Jeanette Lee
Robin Feld
Meg Hitchcock
Alice Garik
Stan Allen
Douglas Ross
Alison Berry
Jack Fischer
Deborah Sevett
Nicola Stephanie
Reynolds Tenazas
Howard Singerman
Sutapa Biswas
Nikolas Kozloff
Annette Weintraub
Paula Stuttman
Molly Hankwitz
Erika Wolf
Dorothea Basile
Sally Stern
Carole Silverstein
Bruce Pearson
Ruth Noack
Jennifer Dowley
Tom Klem
Mara Faye Lethem
Stacey Stormes
Margaret Olin
Susan Canning
Joy Makon
Anna Gimein
Carole Silverstein
Julio Sims
Julia Jacquette
Ron Baron
Ferris Olin
Robin Feld
Molly Hankwitz
Mark Getlein
Gerald Pagane
Elisa Turner
Sokhi Wagner
Josie Gulliksen
Sura Levine
Nicola Stephanie
Francesca Fuchs
Charles Desmarais
Nina Meledandri
Robin Lehrer Roi
Bridget Moore
Carole Silverstein
Ann Murray
Elisabeth Subrin
Joy Silverman
Alec MacLeod
Arlene Rush
Deborah Kass
Jody Zellen
Susan Silton
Caren Kaplan
Patricia Fabricant
Lucy Fradkin
Yolanda Sanchez
Warren Lehrer
Katherine Bradford
Margie Neuhaus
Karin Kincheloe
Matt Blackwell
Kimberly Irwin
Ebet Roberts
Elizabeth Zans
Sid Sachs
Amir Cooper
Sue Strande
Leslie Adatto
Dee Shapiro
Vija Doks
Jo Beth Ravitz
Alisa Solomon
John Trotter
Caroline Hannah
Tomie Arai
Zigi BenHaim
Andrea Callard
Mary Ting
Duvall Osteen
Chris Gianakos
Barton Byg
Francesca diMattio
Lily Simonson
Katia Santibanez
Melissa Meyer
Lisa Corinne Davis
Janet Goldner
Susan Bee
Howard Saunders
Judith Henry
Barbara Zucker
Lisa Bloom
Elaine Reichek
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