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| President Franklin D. Roosevelt |
The Federal Art Project was one of five programs that made up “Federal One”.
Federal One was an initiative managed by a government agency called the WPA (Works Progress Administration), to help put Americans back to work after the tragedy of the Great Depression.
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| “Wealth of a Nation” by Seymour Fogel (1942) |
At that time in the ‘30s, unemployment was up to 25%! (For reference, in December 2024 unemployment in America was at 4%)
Artist: Raymond Johnson
“In one of its most famous projects, Federal Project Number One, the WPA employed musicians, artists, writers, actors and directors in arts, drama, media, and literacy projects.[1]
The five projects dedicated to these were the Federal Writers' Project (FWP), the Historical Records Survey (HRS), the Federal Theatre Project (FTP), the Federal Music Project(FMP), and the Federal Art Project (FAP).”
The Federal Art Project employed visual artists. This includes painters, photographers, printmakers, sculptors, and graphic designers.
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| “Beauticians Academy” by Harry Gottlieb (1935) |
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| Artist at work for FAP |
Someone asked New Deal Administrator Harry Hopkins why the government should provide jobs for unemployed artists. He replied, "Hell, they've got to eat just like other people.”
This response effectively humanizes artists. Often times artists are made to feel like their work is not “real work” or that it simply doesn’t matter. But the FAP gave artist a sense of importance, and they greatly appreciated the opportunity to serve their country with their talents.
“Government art programs rescued artists from poverty and despair. But they also served a larger purpose-to give all Americans access to art and culture. New Deal artists brought theater, music, and dance to every corner of the nation and created hundreds of thousands of paintings, prints, drawings and sculpture. Their work continues to adorn public buildings throughout the country.”
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| “Makers of Steel” by Harry Gottlieb (1937) |
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| “Fighting Forest Fire” by Ernest Fiene (1938) |
The FAP was a great help to Black artists as well. It helped the community by providing art centers where anyone could come learn and practice for free.
Unfortunately when the WPA ended, so did funding. And so a lot of these centers closed their doors.
We haven’t had federal support for the arts since the Second New Deal in the 1930s. The result is a lack of support for art education and the empowerment of art hubs and community centers.
However,
Shoutout to FDR for the support. The Federal Art Project introduced everyday citizens to art and culture and produced famous and works that we can still enjoy today.
More to come on how the FAP affected the black community specifically.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration
http://www.wwcd.org/policy/US/newdeal.html
https://www.fdrlibrary.org/art-detail
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