Labor History Today

Coit Tower’s New Deal Murals


Listen Later

From 1935 to 1943 the Federal Art Project -- a project of the Works Progress Administration, or WPA-- employed some 10,000 artists and craft workers, helping them survive the Great Depression.


The artists created hundreds of thousands of visual arts: paintings, murals, prints, posters, and renderings. Many of them survive to this day, but you have to know where to look for them.
That’s why LHT host Chris Garlock found himself on Telegraph Hill yesterday, during a visit to San Francisco, meeting up with Harvey Smith, who leads tours of local WPA sites. Find out more at LivingNewDeal.org

Coit Tower is home to a stunning collection of murals that have recently been restored; Chris had seen them many years ago and had been struck by the depictions of workers and bosses that managed to be simultaneously beautiful and politically powerful and arranged to meet up with Harvey so he could shed some light on their creation and meaning.

Harvey does a terrific job describing the art, but we’ve also got a great album of photos of the murals posted on the Labor Heritage Foundation’s Facebook page.


On this week’s Labor History in Two: The year was 1917; that was the day IWW leader Frank Little was buried in Butte, Montana.

Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at [email protected]

Labor History Today is produced by Chris Garlock for the Labor Heritage Foundation and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor. Coit Tower mural photos by Lisa Garlock.

#LaborRadioPod #History #WorkingClass #ClassStruggle @GeorgetownKILWP #LaborHistory @UMDMLA @ILLaborHistory @AFLCIO @StrikeHistory #LaborHistory @wrkclasshistory @LivingNewDeal

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Labor History TodayBy laborhistorytoday

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

21 ratings


More shows like Labor History Today

View all
Democracy Now! Audio by Democracy Now!

Democracy Now! Audio

5,660 Listeners

Fresh Air by NPR

Fresh Air

38,198 Listeners

Jacobin Radio by Jacobin

Jacobin Radio

1,399 Listeners

The Dig by Daniel Denvir

The Dig

1,522 Listeners

The New Yorker Radio Hour by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker Radio Hour

6,677 Listeners

Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff by Democracy at Work - Richard D. Wolff

Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

1,959 Listeners

Chapo Trap House by Chapo Trap House

Chapo Trap House

8,798 Listeners

The Intercept Briefing by The Intercept

The Intercept Briefing

6,115 Listeners

Trillbilly Worker's Party by Trillbilly Worker's Party

Trillbilly Worker's Party

1,897 Listeners

The Antifada by Sean KB and AP Andy

The Antifada

926 Listeners

The Al Franken Podcast by The Al Franken Podcast

The Al Franken Podcast

8,611 Listeners

5-4 by Prologue Projects

5-4

3,355 Listeners

Means Morning News by Means Cooperative

Means Morning News

138 Listeners

Labor Radio-Podcast Weekly by laborradiopodcastweekly

Labor Radio-Podcast Weekly

13 Listeners

Geopolitical Economy Report by Ben Norton

Geopolitical Economy Report

282 Listeners