Reflecting on Corita Kent and the Gas Tank

Panel Discussion on the Gas Tank
Saturday, October 27, 7:00 pm
Savin Hill Yacht Club
Free
Part of the Dorchester Open Studios
More info about the studios

If you have lived in Boston for a long time, you are aware of the area's most prominent landmark next to the Citgo sign--the gas tank on I-93. If you haven't lived in Boston for long, you're probably wondering what's going on with the gas tank with the bright stripes.

Boston Gas hired artist Corita Kent (1918-1986) to paint the tank in 1971. Kent caused a ruckus because some people thought the blue stripe was an outline of Ho Chi Minh. When the tank was replaced and Kent's design was repainted, the stripe was considered less Ho Chi Minh-like.

The Dorchester Arts Collaborative and the Dorchester Historical Society have organized a panel discussion about Corita Kent's controversial painting on the gas tank. Panelists include Alexandra Carrera, Executive Director of the Corita Art Center in Los Angeles; Susan Dackerman, Carl A. Weyerhaeuser Curator of Prints at the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University; Mickey Myers, artist, former Dorchester resident, Associate Producer of Primary Colors: The Story of Corita, and friend of Corita Kent; former Boston Gas Company Public Relations Executive Frank Arricale; and former State Senator Paul White.

The Dorchester Open Studios will be held October 27 and 28 from 12:00 to 5:00 pm. A full program guide is available from the Dorchester Arts Collective.

Image by Flickr user Peter Kaminski. Public photo with Creative Commons license.