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Twentieth Century Radicalism in Minnesota Oral History Project: Interview with Andre Boratko

Titles: Twentieth Century Radicalism in Minnesota Oral History Project: Interview with Andre Boratko (Supplied title)

Description: BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Andre Boratko was born in Czechoslovakia in 1911, and immigrated to the United States with his parents when he was three years old. The family settled in St. Paul, where Boratko graduated from Mechanic Arts High School. He attended the Chicago Art Institute and returned to the Twin cities to teach at the St. Paul School of Arts (1935-36). He also worked under Clement Haupers on the WPA Federal, Arts Project. As a WPA artist he painted a mural in the town hall at Milaca, Minnesota, and the Faribault School for the Deaf. Before that project was finished, however, he was transferred to the WPA Federal Art Project in South Dakota, where he taught community art classes. After he and his wife, Dorothy, moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, Boratko taught at the California college of Arts and Crafts from 1946 to 1954. Besides his murals, he also worked in oil, water-color, and sculpture. His murals were generally painted in restaurants and shopping centers. Boratko died in 1990 (see obituary in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Aug. 25th, 1990). SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Boratko talks about his family and his training as an artist. He describes some of the art works he began in the WPA, and the mural in Milaca. He touches on the philosophy of the Federal Arts Project, and recalls his work in South Dakota. He taught Dakota Indians, and gives his impression of their attitudes and lives. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: As Boratko explains, he was suffering from Parkinson's disease at the time of the interview, so it is not very complete. His thoughts wander and he often does not finish his sentences. There is another, shorter interview with Boratko in the Historical Society's collection, done when his mind was clearer. It deals mainly with his work on the Milaca town hall mural. There is some background noise on the tape.

Dates

  • 02/18/1988 (Creation)

Creation

Identifiers

Holding Type: Oral History - Interview

Project

Quantity: 1 hour sound cassette 6 pages transcript

Format

  • Content Category: sound recordings
  • Content Category: text

Measurements

  • 00:46:16 running time

Subjects

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Audio:

Audio Part 1

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Audio Part 2

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