Existing comment:
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882-1945 (Ben Shahn poster):
During the 1930s and 1940s, Ben Shahn's murals and portraits on behalf of liberal and progressive causes earned him national recognition. Shahn worked for President Franklin Roosevelt's Farm Security Administration in the 1930s, convinced that New Deal reforms were necessary to get the country out of the Great Depression. He also favored the president's strong support of organized labor and the passage of the landmark National Labor Relations Act in 1935. In 1944, Shahn worked for the Political Action Committee of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, creating posters that supported Roosevelt's strongly contested campaign for a fourth term. The CIO PAC was one of FDR's most powerful and wealthy supporters in this election.
Shahn's poster presents a warm and sympathetic image of FDR, a father-like figure looming above his supporters; laborers wearing AFL and CIO buttons; soldiers; African Americans; and a child representing the future.
Ben Shahn, 1944 |