President of the National Civic Art Society, a non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. that promotes the classical and humanistic tradition in public art and architecture. Eleventh Chairman of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, an independent federal agency comprising seven presidential appointees who are the aesthetic guardians of Washington.
In December 2024, I was interviewed about public architecture, monuments, and the future of the National Endowment for the Arts on the podcast of esteemed historian Victor Davis Hanson, recipient of the National Humanities Medal from President George W. Bush. Jack Fowler co-hosted. At the end of the interview, Hanson concluded:
“If anyone is listening in the Trump transition, and I know that some people are, we have a great guest Justin Shubow, and he would be the ideal director of National Endowment for the Arts. Good luck, Justin. Whatever role you’ll play I’m sure it’s going to be influential and determinative.”
Bradley Devlin, politics editor of the Daily Signal, interviewed me on the Signal Sitdown podcast. It was a wide-ranging conversation that included President Trump’s desire to beautify federal architecture, the new National Eisenhower Memorial (bad), the new National World War I Memorial (good), building a new classical Pennsylvania Station in New York City, and more.
Devlin published a write-up of the interview. To quote:
“Winston Churchill gave a speech on the rebuilding of the House of Commons after it had been bombed in World War II, and he famously said, ‘we shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us.’” Shubow continued. “He was a statesman and he understood the role of architecture for the body politic.”
Churchill understood, in Shubow’s opinion, that “it’s no small matter for a government to support art and architecture that redounds to the greatness of the country. This is something that Theodore Roosevelt talked about, who was actually quite interested in art and architecture. He said a national greatness that does not include art and artistic and architectural greatness is only a malformed greatness.”
You can watch the video of the interview on YouTube here.
I had the pleasure of being interviewed by John Hirschauer for 10 Blocks, the podcast of City Journal magazine, a publication of the Manhattan Institute. To quote:
John Hirschauer: According to sources, you’re being considered to chair the National Endowment for the Arts. What specific goals would you aim to achieve were you appointed to that post?
Justin Shubow: Well, I don’t want to be presumptuous about serving in the administration, but it would be a true honor and privilege. . . .
My vision for the NEA comes from Dana Gioia, the masterful poet and translator who served as NEA chairman under President George W. Bush. Gioia said, “A great nation deserves great art,” and I fervently agree. I believe the agency needs major change. For many years, Republican politicians have called for eliminating the NEA, but I think that is because they don’t believe the agency has been fostering great art, and I would do my best to change that. The way I see it, and I hope this is not controversial, the highest art is that which is beautiful, profound, and/or moving. It reflects the human condition.
When I go into a contemporary art museum today, I have to say I don’t often see much that is beautiful, profound or moving, and the NEA needs to do its part to fix that. I believe this country needs a cultural and artistic renaissance, and National Endowment for the Arts ought to play a key role in that.
Can classical architecture unite Americans in an otherwise divided time? I said “yes” in a lecture earlier this year.
I explored how timeless design rooted in ancient precedents–and employed by the Founding Fathers–bolsters democracy, unity, and civic identity.
The talk was part of the conference “A New Path for Beauty” co-sponsored by the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation and the National Civic Art Society that took place at Cambridge University in the UK.
The other panelists were María Fernanda Sánchez, architect of Cayalá, a new classical city in Guatemala; and the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, former UK Housing Secretary, now editor of The Spectator. Samuel Hughes moderated.
Setting up for an interview of me for CBS Saturday Morning me regarding the future of Brutalist buildings. Host Dana Jacobson and I also did a “walk and talk” in Washington, D.C. in front of the hideous Forrestal building, headquarters of the Department of Energy. The segment should air December 28, 2024.
In his November 28, 2024 Wall Street Journal op-ed “Trump Can Restore Honor to American Art,” Johnny Burtka, president and CEO of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute wrote, “There are plenty of other candidates better suited to restore honor to federal arts and culture agencies [including the National Endowment for the Arts]. Justin Shubow, president of the National Civic Art Society, served on the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts during Mr. Trump’s first term before becoming chairman in 2021. He played a critical role in the president’s classical-architecture initiative and influenced the designs of the Dwight Eisenhower and World War I Memorials… [He] would serve as [an] eloquent defender[] of Western civilization.”
I had the pleasure of discussing the future of art and architecture policy under President Trump’s second term on Aaron Renn’s show. I don’t make any presumptions about my role in the administration, but I hope the leadership of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) will share my vision, which come sfrom former NEA chairman Dana Gioia: “A great nation deserves great art.” See below for how to watch/listen:
I’m honored to have been selected as a juror for the Addison Mizner Awards, the highest prizes given out by the Florida chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. The award ceremony will take place April 26, 2025 at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida.
Joe Grogan, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council in the Trump administration, interviewed me on the DC EKG podcast. I spoke at length about the magnificent new classical National World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C. I also discussed what needs to be done to regarding Brutalist buildings in the city, as well as my time as chairman of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, including why President Biden removed me in violation of 110 years of precedent. You can watch the video here. You can listen here.
I was glad to sit down with Johnny Burtka, president and CEO of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI), for an interview about my work at the National Civic Art Society. I discussed how beauty, art, and architecture shape a flourishing society, including the importance of classical architecture in fostering civic pride and cultural renewal, the influence of aesthetics on a society’s moral character, and the challenges posed by Modernist architecture. You can watch the interview, which was published on October 31, 2024, here.
