Thought Paper #5

Eva Dunn

Professor Stacy Asher

Art 195

October 13, 2012

WPA Impact

During the 1930s, America went through the most devastating economic downturn it has ever faced.  When Roosevelt came into office in 1933, he hit the ground running with the New Deal Programs, which aimed to save America’s economy. Amidst many diverse programs, one prominent plan was the Works Progress Administration, or the WPA.  The WPA was created in order to employ millions of unskilled workers to carry out projects aimed to improve the public.  New roads and buildings were built, and artists, writers, actors, and directors were all employed because they had no other skilled training other than their passions.  Ocean Beach, or more specifically, the Beach Chalet, is an important site in history because it exemplifies the reformations in San Francisco enacted by the WPA.

During the Great Depression, the WPA employed many artists to document everyday life in the form of murals in new post offices and other important buildings.  These murals depicted the reality of the time period and now serve as a historical documentation of the Great Depression.  The Beach Chalet is a historically significant place because it houses many murals by Lucien Labaudt which depict the time period of the Great Depression.

Signage creates a sense of place at Ocean Beach.  For one, the most important signage is in the first floor of the Beach Chalet.  This signage comes in the form of murals, artifacts, informational signs, and dioramas.  These signs create a sense of knowledge of the past of Ocean Beach.  The murals promote visual recognition of the history of San Francisco.  The artifacts help others envision what life was like in the ‘30s.  The informational signs explain the history and importance of many little details one may not have picked up from merely looking at the murals or artifacts. Finally, the dioramas put things on a smaller scale, which can change one’s perspective of Golden Gate Park and San Francisco in general.  Another important type of signage at Ocean Beach is the massive amounts of graffiti.  This graffiti serves as a kind of symbol as to how WPA projects have gone downhill since the 1930s.  The degradation of the area through graffiti and the unkempt beach shows that the views of improvement during the 1930s have disintegrated.  It is important to remember one’s history.  The Beach Chalet serves to promote the remembrance of San Francisco’s history, but the disintegration of the area proves that the morals during the Great Depression are not as prominent today, and the Beach Chalet (and other WPA projects) could potentially be in danger because of that.

The WPA contributed greatly to the city and culture of San Francisco. For one, it improved the city visually, which, in turn, uplifted people’s spirits during such a difficult time.  The WPA did a number of things for San Francisco.  It improved San Francisco’s roads, which were more populous after the Golden Gate Bridge and Bay Bridge came into place.  Also, the WPA created many new public buildings and facilities such as hospitals, libraries, and Golden Gate Park buildings. Not only were new buildings erected, many existing buildings were improved and refurbished; they may have gotten new plumbing or heating facilities.  The San Francisco Zoo and San Francisco Aquatic Park were created as a result of the WPA, a great undertaking of the city of San Francisco. And finally, many parks were built because of the WPA.  All of these improvements by the WPA served to improve everyday life for the citizens of San Francisco.  The improvements of buildings and creation of recreation activities promoted happiness and a sense of well-being for San Francisco Residents. In such a devastating time period, the many improvements helped to ease the sense of devastation and help others not be as affected by the Great Depression.

Overall, the Beach Chalet is a historically significant site, which exemplifies the works administered by the WPA.  The WPA served as a vital source of happiness and well-being, not only creating jobs, but also making San Francisco more beautiful and functional in such a devastating time period.  The question is: do we need another WPA today, and what happens when the disintegration of WPA projects makes San Francisco forget its past?

(images to come)