Photography and the Great Depression Using Art Appreciation to Teach History

How to “Read” a Piece of Artwork Similar to Reading a Book Using Inference and deduction Previous knowledge affects response Source: The National Gallery in London: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/learning/teachers-and-schools/english-and- drama/how-to-read-a-painting?viewPage=1

Activity: Reading Depression Era Photography View your photograph. Imagine yourself in the scene of the photo. *What do you think the photographer was trying to tell us with this photo? *What might be happening in the photo? *Where do you think this photo was taken? *What emotions do you feel while viewing this photo? *How does this inform your previous knowledge of the Great Depression? How does your previous knowledge inform your understanding of the photo?

FSA and Photography FSA- Farm Security Administration Formed to help rural Americans during the Great Depression Publicity Department - focused on high quality photography to show the people in the cities what was happening to farmers. Hired skilled photographers, in the end the collection was over 80,000 photographs. Published in newspapers, magazines, and displayed in art galleries.

FSA Photography Dorothea Lange (1895-1965) “The Migrant Mother” Known as the “Photographer of the People” Owned a professional portrait studio During depression, found an interest in photographing people outside of the studio Hired by the FSA to photograph Rural America “The Migrant Mother” Photographed in 1936 in Nipomo, CA

Impact of Photos Lange spent years working for government agencies to document lives of everyday people during the Great Depression After Lange returned home, she told the editor of a San Francisco newspaper about conditions of the migrant camps The editor informed federal authorities and published an article that included two of Lange’s photos. As a result, the government rushed aid to the camp to help prevent starvation

Lois Houle on Relief and Flour Sacks http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_14.html

Turn and Talk... In what way do you think that the photography done by the FSA impacted our understanding of the Great Depression?

WPA and Murals Works Progress Administration Provided relief to Americans suffering from the Great Depression President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted to provide work for artists that were on relief- “they need to eat, too” Mission- to show a positive view of the United States

“Scandalous” Art Snow Shovellers by: Jacob Getlar Smith. Picture shows unemployed men trudging off to make a few cents clearing park paths. Scandal- Black and White Americans seen working side by side Who might be upset with these paintings? Why?

Have you seen this mural? “Threshing Barley” – tempera Charles W. Thwaites (1940)

Final Reflection How did learning about the artwork from the Depression impact your understanding of this time period in history? What were the main differences between the artwork commissioned by the FSA and the WPA? Why do you think it was important to pay artists to create and capture these images? What questions do you have that have not been answered?