The establishment of the Works Project Administration (WPA) on October 14, 1935 signaled the start of wide scale Government support of the arts in America. The mission of the WPA, which was created as a part of the New Deal, was two fold: Its first purpose was to help create employment in depression era America, offering artists minimum wages for commissioned works of art and teaching posts.

Chain Gang, William H. Johnson, c.1939. Oil on wood, 45.75 x 38.5''

In 1932, before the WPA, the painter William H. Johnson, for example wrote from abroad, "Will you please see if I am eligible to be a teacher in some art department in a Negro college or university or school some place in the U.S.A.-- for I must be able to make a living some place." In 1938, upon Johnson's return he was commissioned by the WPA to paint murals. The WPA also acted as a catalyst for the development of the arts and the artists within the community. Strengthening the community through the arts worked to raise the moral of communities trapped in the depression. In Harlem, the WPA was a source of solidarity within the art world. It encouraged unprecedented interaction between the various artists and the community. Bringing forth such projects as the Harlem Hospital Murals and the Harlem Community Arts center which drew more than 3,000 students and 10,000 visitors during the first year. Harlem Hospital Mural Aaron Douglas

The WPA in Harlem was built around an already strong artistic community, consisting of, most notably Augusta Savage and her "306 group" as well as regular exhibitions held at the Schomburg branch of the N.Y. public library. But the WPA's influence was astounding. It became a way for fledgling artists, who may have just migrated from the South, to become acquainted with established artists. This venue for artistic interaction helped accelerate the dialogue between the North and the South as artists became acquainted with styles form across America.

Green apples Augusta Savage

With the start of World War II and the end of the Depression, the WPA was halted. Today we are virtually without federal support for the arts. And the two major federal programs that support creativity in America are under fire. Without the WPA and similar programs, many of our greatest African American writers and artists would never have had the chance to create or display their works. The Subway Palmer Hayden, 1930. Oil on canvas, 31 x26.5''