StraightForward paintings of ordinary American peoples

'Painting the People," an exhibition of American art created mainly in the first half of the 20th century, could eagerly be titled "Painting for People." It's a show that generate good feelings about art, about humanity, and even, to a degree, about American culture.

These 44 paintings, on view at the James A. Michener Art Museum, address for antimodernism. They're nativist not only in subject matter, in the way they portray ordinary peoples, but also in their reliance on the belief that, after the hugely influential Armory show in 1913, some American artists rejected Europe as a basis of inspiration.

"Painting the People" is, for the most part, narrative, realist, and uncomplicated. The images that don't need to be deconstructed or puzzled out. They're paintings "for people" in the sense that specialized knowledge or art experience isn't necessary to enjoy them.