Out of all the many programs and projects generated by the New Deal, during the Great Depression, the one with the greatest legacy may be the photographic collection produced by the FSA (Farm Security Administration). Between 1935 and 1944 at least "171,000 black-and-white film negatives and transparencies, 1,610 color transparencies, and around 107,000 black-and-white photographic prints" were made, according to the Library of Congress. Among these are some of the most iconic images in American History, including Dorothea Lange's "Migrant Mother," and the photographs of sharecroppers taken by Walker Evans, featured in James Agee's book "Let Us Now Praise Famous Men."
The photography project was, ostensibly, a propaganda mission to promote the work of the FSA (originally the Resettlement Administration). Photographers were sent out to document the needs of farmers and how the FSA was making things better for them. But Roy Stryker, the head of the "Historical Section" of the FSA, seemed to have a wider notion of the project's scope - that of documenting American life in general. Stryker accomplished his mission as propagandist (and wrangler of photographers), admirably, while at the same time leaving us a nearly complete portrait of America from 1935 to 1943.
Photographers under Stryker included Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, Russell Lee, Arthur Rothstein, Ben Shahn, Jack Delano, Marion Post Wolcott, Gordon Parks, John Vachon, and Carl Mydans. They came from different backgrounds and artistic perspectives. Some were New Dealers on a mission, some were more artistically inclined, some were dedicated to pure documentation. They all produced very good pictures. Their work was displayed publicly and reproduced in newspapers and magazines across the country. In 1942 the program became the Office of War Information, dedicated to documenting and promoting the war effort. The entire collection was turned over to the Library of Congress after the war ended.
Today, the collection is available online, free of charge, to anyone wanting to view it. Most of the pictures are in the public domain and can be reprinted without charge.
Several new books have been published about the FSA photography program. The Library of Congress has produced a three volume paperback series called "Fields of Vision," with volumes dedicated to Russell Lee, Marion Post Wolcott, and Ben Shahn. The books make a great companion to the online collection, and at $12.95 each, they won't break your bank account.
For a more in-depth look, check out "The Likes Of Us: America in the eyes of the Farm Security Administration," by Stu Cohen. {I bought (out of my own pocket), have read, and recommend all four titles.}
Be your own FSA!
The New Deal ain't coming back anytime soon, but that doesn't mean we can't replicate the FSA photographers on our own time. With a good digital camera and blogging tools such as those offered for free at Blogger (they give you a gigabyte of storage space) etc, you can document your own region in any way you like. Anyone with an entry-level digital SLR camera (or even a good digicam), and a photo editing program already has the old FSA outgunned in a serious way. Why not take that space and make some history?
