Introduction
For this art gallery I decided to focus on the art that came from the harsh period of time known as the Great Depression. It was a low point for many in that period and the art that came from the period emphasized just what it was like for people in that period.
Apple Vendor
Lets start off with my favorite piece “Apple Vendor” by Barbara Stevenson, the piece was painted in 1933. It’s a great piece that shows a man trying to make a living by sitting out on the sidewalk to sell his apples. This piece helps sell me on the time period of people without work trying to find a way to find a way to provide for themselves. The piece makes it tell even more of a message when one considers the woman and boy behind him are thought to be the man’s family. It makes me think they are waiting to see if he has any success today as if what he sells will determine their future. It also just shows the hard times when you look at the condition of the stand is faded and looks like it was more hand made like this was the best the man could afford to present what he has to sell.
Personally I really like this piece I would love to have it in my home. I enjoy the man at the center of the photo and how you cant see his eyes to tell exactly how he feels about the situation. H e just looks stoic as he sits and waits for someone to approach him. I also love the use of color in this as well as the overall style. It has a gritty or rough look to it that helps make it capture more of that harsh theme that the depression gave off.
Sand
This piece known as “Sand” was painted in 1936 by an American painter by the name of George Biddle. It’s a great piece that I think highlights a profession that was hit the hardest by the event that happened by the Great Depression, Farmers. It’s a piece that both shows the shambles of a farm and it’s dead farm life. A piece that you can tell is portraying the effects of the dust bowl that ruined many homes around the time of depression. I love this piece just because of how well it captured the spirit of this event it’s a truly great shot that looks like a painted version of what the farms actually looked like during that period of time, a ghost town. The piece also just captures the dark period by keeping it in black in white adding more to the affect of just how sad these time were with these monotone colors.
Migrant Mother
For my last choice of an image for this gallery I chose the picture known as “Migrant Mother” taken by American Photographer Dorothea Lange. The photo was taken at a camp outside of Las Angeles in March of 1936.This famous photo that is said to truly show the affects the depression had on a person. You can just tell imminently what the woman is feeling with just one look at her face, the sadness and anguish that she is feeling as her two children cry on her shoulders. It’s a gripping piece that just showed the defeat people felt during that time where they couldn’t provide for their families and didn’t know if there was any way for them to be able to be able to get back to the prosperous times they knew before The Depression.
Sources
Biddle, George. “Sand!” Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Museum, www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/92817.
Stevenson, Barbara. “Apple Vendor.”Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, americanart.si.edu/artwork/apple-vendor-23048.
“Migrant Mother, 1936,” EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005).
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