Inside Iowa State

September 10, 2004

Historical photo collection at Brunnier

"Farm Life in Iowa," photographs by A.M. "Pete" Wettach, includes 30 photographs shot in the 1930s and 1940s that document farmers' daily lives and capture technological and social changes. The exhibit will be at the Brunnier Art Museum through December.

In contrast to other photographers who focused on the grimness of the time, Wettach is known for capturing the warmth, humor and resilience of the people he photographed.

Wettach moved to Iowa from his native New Jersey in the 1920s with the goal of becoming a farmer. Like many in the 1930s, he lost his farm. He settled in Mt. Pleasant and worked with the Farm Security Administration as supervisor of a 17-county area. His duties included administering farm loans, and he took his camera on visits to clients throughout southeast Iowa.

His photographs appeared in publications such as the Des Moines Register, Wallace's Farmer, Successful Farming and the Saturday Evening Post. In 1948, he became a full-time photographer and continued to travel and photograph the rural Midwest until his death in 1976.

"Family showing dairy cows," ca. 1935, is one of 30 A.M. Wettach photographs on exhibit this semester at the Brunnier Art Museum. (From the © A.M. Wettach Collection, State Historical Society of Iowa, exhibit organized by the University of Iowa Museum of Art).

Wettach's work is on loan from the permanent collection of the State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City. In 2002, the University of Iowa press published a book of his work, A Bountiful Harvest: The Midwest Farm Photos of Pete Wettach, 1925-1965.

Admission to the Brunnier is free; a $3 donation is suggested.

Student Union Board

Fall film series at the Memorial Union

• Films start at 8 p.m. in the Pioneer Room (unless noted)
• $1 admission includes popcorn

The Fog of War (2003)

This Errol Morris documentary features Robert McNamara, U.S. Secretary of Defense during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.

• Sept. 9-10

Tron (1982)

Dillinger has stolen the plans for a video game, "Space Paranoid," from the hero, a bright kid named Flynn. Dillinger covers his tracks by using the latest computer technology to break Flynn down into a matrix of logical points and insert him into the computer.

• Sept. 16-18

Shall We Dance? (1997)

(Japanese with English subtitles)

A successful but unhappy Japanese businessman summons the courage to break out of his routine and enlist in ballroom dance classes.

• Sept. 23-24

Supersize Me (2004)

Morgan Spurlock ate a "McDonald's-only" diet for 30 days and produced this documentary about the diet's effect on his health.

• Sept. 26 (4 p.m., MU South Ballroom); Sept. 29

Dirty Pretty Things (2003)

A young man and a Turkish chambermaid work at the same West London hotel -- a breeding ground for illegal activity. The man makes a shocking discovery one night.

• Sept. 30 and Oct. 1

The Opposite of Sex (1998)

Louisiana minx Dedee Truitt takes off with her gay half-brother Bill's boyfriend, the ashes of his dead lover and enough money to finance her unborn baby.

• Oct. 7-8

To Be and To Have (2003)

(French with English subtitles)

Inspired by the French phenomenon of "single-class" schools, this documentary charts the life of a village school. Watching kindergartners learn to crack an egg into a bowl is hardly drama, and yet watching it, you suspect that something important is happening.

• Oct. 14-15

CQ (2002)

Set in 1969, CQ is a behind-the-scenes look at the making of a femme fatale spy movie. Paul, an editor and second-unit director, has dreams of making a hot, personal movie and is so self-obsessed that he's almost paralyzed by the real world.

• Oct. 21-22

Spider (2002)

Following his release from prison, Spider moves into a hostel for the homeless. His schizophrenic state of mind can be traced to a (seemingly) turbulent childhood; it's these formative years that lie at the core of the film.

• Oct. 28-29

The Fast Runner (Atanarjuat), 2002

Evil in the form of an unknown shaman divides a small community of nomadic Inuit. Twenty years later, two brothers emerge to challenge the evil order: Amaqjuaq, the Strong One, and Atanarjuat, the Fast Runner. The film is Canada's first feature-length fiction film written, produced, directed and acted by Inuit.

• Nov. 4-5

Big Night (1996)

Two immigrant Italian brothers dream of running a successful restaurant. As their business struggles, they pin their hopes on a lavish banquet honoring a star vocalist, who a friend has promised to bring to the restaurant.

• Nov. 11 (film only)
• Nov. 12 (dinner will be served before the movie)

An exhibit of 30 photographs shot in the 1930s and 1940s by A.M. Wettach is on display aat the Brunnier Art museum through December. Wettach is know for capturing the warmth, humor and resilience of the farm people he photographed.