The Arkansas Educational Television Network has scheduled a special screening event for “Charles Banks Wilson, Portrait of an American Artist” Friday, Nov. 10, beginning at 5:30 p.m. 

   AETN is partnering with the Central Arkansas Library System and the Arkansas Arts Council for the screening, which will be held at the library’s Darragh Center Auditorium, 100 Rock Street in Little Rock’s River Market District. 

   Immediately following the screening, both Wilson and filmmaker Larry Foley, professor of journalism at the University of Arkansas, will be on hand to meet with attendees. The public is invited.  

   “Charles Banks Wilson, Portrait of an American Artist” details the life of 88-year-old Fayetteville resident from his earliest days as he painted his first portrait of humorist Will Rogers, to some of his most recent works, including a portrait of folk musician Woody Guthrie. 

   The film highlights Wilson’s lifelong work painting what he calls “pureblood Indians” – Native Americans who trace their ancestry back to a single tribe. He has also painted portraits of the famous and the poignant circumstances of common people.

   “Charles is not only a wonderful artist, but he’s one of the most colorful storytellers I’ve ever known,” Foley said. “I met him when he let me use some of his Indian paintings for another documentary I was producing (“The Forgotten Expedition”), and I was immediately enchanted by his talent and the tales of his life.” 

   Wilson began the most expansive work of his career in 1970 when he was commissioned to paint four historical murals for the Oklahoma Capitol’s rotunda. Each mural is 13-feet tall and 27-feet wide. Much of Wilson’s art, and all of his pureblood portraits, are part of the permanent collection at the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Okla. 

   “There’s a story in everything that I’ve done,” Wilson said. “And the story is what turns me on. I think that an artist’s importance is portraying his time and place – and that’s what I’ve tried to do.” 

   Wilson is the recipient of the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Arkansas Arts Council’s Governor’s Arts Awards. 

   Foley, an accomplished documentary filmmaker, has earned many national and international awards, including an Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, four Emmy nominations, first place awards from the Broadcast Education Association, WorldFest Houston, the Aurora Film Festival and the International Film and Video Festival. He specializes in writing and producing films on cultural history. 

   Foley’s PBS credits include “Saving the Eagles,” “The Lost Squadron” and “When Lightning Struck: Saga of an American Warplane.” In 2003, “The Forgotten Expedition” and “It Started Here: Early Arkansas and the Louisiana Purchase” were distributed nationally to public TV stations by the National Educational Telecommunications Association. 

   Now celebrating 40 years of service to the state, the Arkansas Educational Television Network (www.aetn.org) provides lifelong learning opportunities, improves and enhances Arkansans’ lives and celebrates the unique culture of Arkansas through its programming. AETN’s five transmitters and numerous cable system connections give it statewide reach.