Donato Rico, "Subway Drillers," (detail) c. 1937, wood engraving, Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government G1943.1.25.
Art in Every Corner: The Works Progress Administration (1935-1943)
Type
Paper Vault
Location
Second Floor, Michener Building
In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a relief program that employed struggling Americans during the Great Depression. Over the course of eight years, the WPA funded nearly 10,000 artists to produce work for public buildings and traveling exhibitions, bringing art to people across the United States.
“I, too, have a dream—to show people in the out of the way places, some of whom are not only in small villages but in corners of New York City—something they cannot get from between the covers of books—some real paintings and prints and etchings and some real music.”
Franklin Roosevelt to Hendrik Willem Van Loon, January 6, 1938
In addition to supporting a flurry of creative output and innovation across artistic media, the WPA encouraged artists to directly engage with the everyday experiences of Americans from rural communities to urban centers. Following the WPA’s closure in 1943, works of art created under federal sponsorship were allocated to institutions across the country, including what is today the Blanton Museum of Art. This exhibitioncelebrates the prints, drawings, and paintings the museum received and the WPA’s dynamic impact on artists who depicted every corner of American life.
Curated by Sarah Bane, Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings, Blanton Museum of Art
Our most popular program for young visitors! Read along to a picture book paired with a work of art. This month the theme is community, and the book is In the Meadow of Fantasies by Hadi Mohammadi & Nooshin Safakhoo, paired with an artwork featured in our collection.
Inspiring curiosity in ages 4–8 years old. Presented with support from community partner Alienated Majesty Books.
1 pm
Looking Together
Michener Gallery Building
Ever wondered how others interpret an artwork? Let’s explore a visitor-favorite in our collection together! We’ll use creative ways of looking to make connections and meaning.
Recommended for all visitors 12 years & older.
TBD
Activities
Various Locations
Creative Cardmaking – All ages are invited to make and create a handmade card! Materials provided.
Writing Activity with Austin Typewriter Ink – Sit down at vintage typewriters and create your own poems, notes, and meaningful moments for mothers and caregivers. It’s a hands-on experience that turns simple words into lasting keepsakes.
Massage Therapy – Attendees can schedule and purchase a massage session with a professional chair massage therapist!
Photo Booth – Snap a Mother’s Day memory to take home.
Flowers for Mom – Free roses will be available on our Moody Patio, while supplies last.
2 pm
Curator’s Choice tour
TBD
Join Sarah Bane, Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings, for a gallery talk about the etching The Fleet’s In! by Paul Cadmus, a print based on one of the artist’s most controversial yet influential works.
3 pm
Art with an Expert – What is the Role of Art in a Democracy? Lessons from the New Deal with John P. Murphy
Auditorium, Check-in Building
At the height of the Great Depression, with the economy in ruins and fascism on the rise, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal turned crisis into opportunity. Through unprecedented federal funding for the arts, the New Deal launched the careers of artists such as Dorothea Lange, Jacob Lawrence, Alice Neel, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko, while advancing a bold vision of cultural democracy: art by the people, for the people. This talk considers the promises and pitfalls of the New Deal art programs, drawing lessons for today on the role of art in a democratic society.
Followed by book signing in the Museum Store.
TBD
Silent Disco featuring Peligrosa DJ Collective
Michener Gallery Building
Grab some headphones and groove out to sets by live DJs!
At the height of the Great Depression, with the economy in ruins and fascism on the rise, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal turned crisis into opportunity. Through unprecedented federal funding for the arts, the New Deal launched the careers of artists such as Dorothea Lange, Jacob Lawrence, Alice Neel, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko, while advancing a bold vision of cultural democracy: art by the people, for the people. This talk considers the promises and pitfalls of the New Deal art programs, drawing lessons for today on the role of art in a democratic society.
Followed by a Book Signing in our Museum Store (books available for purchase). If you have any issues clicking through to tickets, please visit this link instead.
Art With an Expert is organized by the Blanton Museum of Art. Support for this program at the Blanton is provided by the Carolyn Harris Hynson Centennial Endowment.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
John P. Murphy is the Philip and Lynn Straus Curator of Prints and Drawings at The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College. A scholar of American art, he is the author of New Deal Art: Culture and Crisis in the Great Depression,published by Thames & Hudson’s World of Art series.
From 2018 to 2021 Murphy served as the Hoehn Curatorial Fellow for Prints at the University of Diego where he curated Storywork: The Prints of Marie Watt, a traveling retrospective co-organized with the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation. In his position as Research Associate and COSI/Mellon Fellow at the Art Institute of Chicago, Murphy curated Flesh: Ivan Albright (2018) and conducted research for Charles White: A Retrospective (2018).
Recent scholarship has appeared in Print Quarterly, Art in Print, American Communist History, and Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art. His research has been supported with grants and fellowships from the Winterthur Museum, the Huntington Library, the Tamiment Library (NYU), and the Wolfsonian Museum. He received his PhD from Northwestern University in 2017.
This exhibition highlights artworks created under the Works Progress Administration (WPA), tracing how President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal relief program shaped artists’ portrayals of American life and brought federally sponsored works into various institutions including the Blanton. Through close looking and conversation, we will make meaningful connections to the works of art on display in our latest Paper Vault Exhibition. Learn more about Art in Every Corner: The Works Progress Administration (1935-1943) on the dedicated web page.
Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the tour. Our tours can accommodate a maximum of 25 people on a first come, first serve basis. Please check-in with our Visitor Services Desk to secure your place.
Feature Image Caption: Elizabeth Olds, Steel Mills, circa 1935, color lithograph, 14 3/4 × 20 3/4 in., Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government, G1943.1.18
Esta exposición destaca obras de arte creadas bajo la Administración de Obras en Progreso (WPA), y traza cómo el programa de asistencia del New Deal del presidente Franklin D. Roosevelt moldeó las representaciones artísticas de la vida estadounidense y llevó obras patrocinadas por el gobierno federal a diversas instituciones, incluido el Blanton.
A través de una mirada atenta y conversación, estableceremos conexiones significativas con las obras de arte expuestas en nuestra última exposición del Paper Vault. Más información sobre Arte en Cada Rincón: The Works Progress Administration (1935–1943) en la página web dedicada.
Se ruega llegar al menos 15 minutos antes del comienzo de la visita. Nuestras visitas guiadas tienen capacidad para un máximo de 25 personas por orden de llegada. Por favor, regístrese en nuestro mostrador de servicios al visitante para asegurar su plaza.
Donato Rico, Subway Drillers, c. 1937, wood engraving, Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government G1943.1.25.
Elizabeth Olds, Steel Mills, circa 1935, color lithograph, 14 3/4 × 20 3/4 in., Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government, G1943.1.18
Hal West, Abandoned Homestead, 1935, linocut, 8 × 5 1/4 in., Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government, G1943.1.35
Michael J. Leone, Golden Gloves Tournament, circa 1935, linocut, 12 × 10 1/8 in., Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Deposit from the Works Progress Administration, United States Government, G1943.1.10
