John F. Kennedy-Institute for North American Studies
This international conference celebrates the 125th anniversary of the birth of Winold Reiss, a versatile German-American painter, designer, and teacher who had once been celebrated as a “modern Cellini” in the United States yet today has been relegated to the footnotes of American art history. In the 1920s and 1930s, Reiss emerged as an influential figure in transatlantic encounters and modernist aesthetics, collaborating with the day’s leading artists and intellectuals. This conference reassesses the contributions of Reiss, including his role as cultural agent, translator, and mediator.