In a new hallway exhibition, Scenes from the Great Depression and its aftermath are presented in the works of recent immigrants and others for the Federal Art Project and the Works Progress Administration.
Works include:
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The Relief Station, 1938, Lithograph by Oscar Van Young b. Viena 1906 d. U.S.A.1991,
"The Relief Station," a realistic and not uncommon scene in art of the period, reflects the despair and patience of families who could no longer feed themselves without assistance. After coming of age in Russia during the civil war, Oscar was sponsored by influential American diplomats to settle in the United States. In the U.S. Oscar studied painting and became well known. His works were widely exhibited.
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Gladys, 1936, Lithograph by Will Barnet
"Gladys" was published by the U.S. government's Works Progress Administration, soon after the program's creation. Its purpose was to create government jobs for the nation's many unemployed in all types of work including the arts. Barnet enjoyed a long career of painting, teaching, and exhibiting his art. He was awarded a National Medal of Arts in 2011 presented by President Obama in a White House ceremony.
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Charlie Parker Going to Wash Dishes, 1984, Photo-etching on Rives paper by Sue Coe, born 1951 England, active in the U.S.A. 1972 --present
To pursue music, Charles Parker left his home in Kansas City and hitched to New York where he looked for opportunities to play his alto saxophone. To make ends meet, Parker washed dishes at Jimmies Chicken Shack in Harlem. He would become a major innovator in jazz when, with Dizzy Gillespie, he created "bebop."