Mark Christopher Covino is a director, producer, and editor. His first feature film, A Band Called Death, won the Audience Award at South by Southwest and was released theatrically to rave reviews around the world. He also directed the award-winning documentary The Crest and produced the sci-fi adventure film Axcellerator.
Join us for the premiere of the documentary Jacob Kainen: The Last Expression, which tells the story of an important but under-recognized DC-area artist and curator. The screening will be followed by a discussion with director Mark Covino, producer Jon Gann, gallerist George Hemphill, Jacob Kainen’s son Dan Kainen, and art historian Jonathan Walz.
Jacob Kainen (1909–2001) was an influential and lauded painter, printmaker, and academic, as well as a curator at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. He was also a mentor and teacher to dozens of Washington-based artists including Alma Thomas and Morris Louis, who would later see major success, often prioritizing this role over his own career. This film is a showcase of Kainen’s extraordinary life and art.
About the Presenters
Jon Gann is a DC-based film producer, multidisciplinary artist, and author. He is the creator of the DC Shorts Film Festival and has worked with dozens of film events worldwide. Recently, he has produced documentaries on artist Alma Thomas, singer Karen Carpenter, and DJ Sam Divine.
George Hemphill is powerhouse in the DC art scene. He is as an artist, a member of the boards of the DC Arts Center and the Washington Project for the Arts, and gallery owner representing two dozen artists and artist estates, including William Christenberry, Steven Cushner, Willem de Looper, Jacob Kainen, Ruri Yi, and Renée Stout.
Dan Kainen is an artist and inventor. With his background in optics, he developed a patented opto-mechanical animation technique that became a series of bestselling children’s picture books, selling over three million copies worldwide, and with more books to come.
Jonathan Frederick Walz is an expert on American modernism and currently serves as the director of curatorial affairs and curator of American art at The Columbus Museum, Georgia. He is the co-curator of the award-winning traveling exhibition Alma W. Thomas: Everything Is Beautiful.
Sign-language interpreters and guides for visitors who are blind or have low vision are available for programs. Please call (202) 842-6905 or email [email protected] three weeks in advance for an appointment. Learn more about accessibility.