Swann is pleased to present our fourth Artists of the WPA auction this winter, 2024. The auction has a wide range of objects including prints, posters, paintings, mural studies, dioramas, and New Deal work program signage. Many artists honed their craft while employed in government programs.
Dorothea Lange’s connection to her subject is inherent, but her mastery at capturing moving and thought-provoking compositions is a skill that she developed through practice. Migrant Mother is one of the most recognizable images from the Great Depression era. Joseph Solman and his like-minded contemporaries that would form The Ten benefited greatly from their time employed in work programs. These artists pushed the boundaries of subject and format with themes of social justice and modernist stylizations. The Excavation is a great example of Solman’s exploration into modernist styles. Artworks such as these were not widely accepted in the American art market and without the New Deal projects, they would not have the freedoms to explore their range.
The New Deal created four specific programs employing artists and artisans:
Works of Art Project, PWAP, December 1933 – June 1934.
Section of Painting and Sculpture, October 1934 – 1943.
Treasury Relief Art Project, TRAP, July 1935 – 1939.
The Work Project Administration’s federal Art Project, WPA/FAP, August 1935 – June 1943.
The Artists of the WPA auction is a timed sale. This allows our clients ample time to view the works, ask our specialists questions, and place bids. We hope you will visit our website and witness this multidepartmental effort to bring fresh eyes to this important historical era in American art.
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The post Auction Highlights: The Artists of the WPA — January 25, 2024 appeared first on Swann Galleries News.