WPA Project

The Federal Works Program was one of the major components of Roosevelt’s New Deal. Putting millions of people to work provided for their well-being, but it also produced the infrastructure and cultural institutions that would last far beyond the lives of any government program or even the lives of the individuals involved.

The Works Progress Administration was the largest of the New Deal programs and provided jobs for millions of Americans, employing people to do jobs similar to those they did before the Depression. Builders built. Writers wrote. Photographers took pictures. Musicians played music. Visual artists were involved in the promotion of it all.

There has never been a time in American history before or since, where the federal government provided so much support for both the physical infrastructure and cultural institutions of the nation. Because we cannot build buildings or bridges, your assignment will be in the foray of the art of the New Deal.

Assignment – You are to produce a poster, photograph, or interview as if you were working for the WPA in the New Deal Era. Whether poster, photograph, or interview, each project should look authentic in its design.

Written Work – Each project is required to have two TYPED paragraphs attached, in which you describe what you are either documenting or advertising and why you chose to represent it in such a way.

Resources for Research –

New Deal/WPA Art in South Carolina

http://www.wpamurals.com/scarolin.htm

WPA Life Histories from South Carolina

http://memory.loc.gov/wpaintro/sccat.html

WPA Posters

http://www.wpaposter.net/

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/wpaposters/wpahome.html

Project Choices – Be sure to research your particular medium so that you can make your project look as authentic as possible.

WPA Poster – Your poster must look like a poster from the New Deal era and must advertise a New Deal program. Be sure to include a WPA logo of your own design, plus any relevant material for describing your chosen program. Keep in mind these posters were not “busy” with details. Try to make them colorful in the same ways the actual posters were. Google “WPA Posters” to get an idea of what might be expected of you.

Drawn Photo – Photographers were paid to document the era. They chose to take pictures of people working, of the poverty characteristic of the era, or of the physical landscape of homes and cities. You can draw a photo of your own creation that depicts these same things from the New Deal era. Google “Walker Evans” and “Dorothea Lange” to get an idea of what might be expected of you.

Photo Essay – If you choose to take actual photos you must have 3 to 5 photos, with one paragraph describing each. These can be fictional representations of the Great Depression that you might find in the world around you, or you may document the current recession in the same way. Google “Walker Evans” and “Dorothea Lange” to get an idea of what might be expected of you.

WPA Interview – If you choose to do a mock interview, you must pick one perspective from the era that interests you. Come up with questions that might be appropriate to ask a person speaking from that perspective, and write sample answers that you think they might have given. Google “WPA Slave Narratives” for an idea of what might be expected of you.

How You Will Be Graded –

	Points Total	“I think…”	Grade
Information – Message of project is clear and suitable for the era. Student displays a depth of understanding of the artwork of the era and New Deal programs.	40
Design – Project uses colors, styles, or formats indicative of the New Deal era. This project could have been produced in 1937 rather than 2009.	30
Use of Time In Class – During all class time provided, you are to be working on your project – research, design, implementation, or discussion.	10
Written Work – Two TYPED paragraphs describing what you are either advertising or documenting and why you chose to represent it in such a way	20