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SFist Interviews: John Ortved, Author of The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History
Berkeley-based writer Sara Houghteling has a debut novel on the shelves called Pictures at an Exhibition, which tells the story of Max Berenzon, son of a Jewish art dealer in Paris and his quest to recover his family's priceless art collection, looted by Nazis during World War II.
SFist asked her a few questions:
SFist: Your family has some history in Paris. Did they have any connection to the pre- or post-war art world you write about?
Houghteling: My great-great-grandfather was a majolica painter in Italy—this is the closet genetic connection I can claim to any fragment of the art world. My family’s only immediate connection to Paris in the post-war period is through my grandfather, who worked for the Marshall Plan mapping bridges.
How much time had/did you spend in Paris, prior to or while writing the book?
I’ve spent about two years living in Paris—the first was as a twenty-two-year-old English teacher at the American School in Paris, and the second as a Fulbright in Paris. Prior to this, as an undergraduate, I worked for the Let’s Go: France travel guide series. The editors asked us to indicate landmarks (like, Youth Hostel, Train Station) on a map, which I was completely incapable of doing. However, I loved learning about the history of the places I visited, especially the artists’ houses in the South of France—Picasso, Matisse, and Chagall were all neighbors down there.
Whose was the most valuable personal account of WWII Parisian history that you relied on in your research?
My novel’s most important historical figure, Rose Clément, takes her name and much of her story from Rose Valland, who lived from 1898-1980. It’s always amazing to me that I was alive during her lifetime. Valland stayed on in the Modern art museum after it was occupied by the Nazis and transformed into a sorting center for the artwork looted from France’s Jews. The Nazis couldn’t believe that such an unassuming woman could disobey their orders, and so even when they caught her writing down lists of paintings, she managed to convince them the notes weren’t important. Her prodigious memory, clandestine communication with the Free French, and meticulous documentation of looters, the looted, and the destination of the spoils saved thousands of paintings for their eventual repatriation. Her 1961 autobiography, Le front de l’art: défense des collections françaises 1939-1945, was the most valuable wartime document for me. I would do anything to have met Valland, but I must be satisfied with her autobiography, which is wonderful. Unfortunately, it’s gone out of print and hasn’t been translated into English. Though I know a wonderful translator here in Berkeley, and she’s interested in taking on the project.
You live in Berkeley now. What has your experience been of the Bay Area writing community. Have you participated in LitQuake or anything similar?
I am very grateful for the Bay Area writing community. I participated in LitQuake in 2007, which was especially good because at the time I was having trouble finishing a chapter of my novel, so the LitQuake reading forced me to edit it. Writing under duress can be very productive.
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Short video of her 2007 reading at LitQuake:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHQzW0tDsII