Explore the Hudson Valley

The Silkscreen Poster Workshop, beginning at 11:00 a.m., will offer a hands-on poster-making experience for attendees of all ages. (Children must be accompanied by an adult.) Silkscreening supplies will be provided for participants to print their own poster to take home. People with little or no experience can come and print a poster. Silkscreen experts will be on site to teach basic techniques and screenprinting skills.

At 2:00 p.m., Philadelphia-based Social Impact Studios founder and director Ennis Carter will discuss her book, POSTERS FOR THE PEOPLE: ART OF THE WPA. Following the talk, Ms. Carter will be available to sign copies of her book. POSTERS FOR THE PEOPLE will be for sale in the New Deal Store.

POSTERS FOR THE PEOPLE: ART OF THE WPA amasses nearly 500 of the best and most striking posters designed by artists working in the 1930s and early 1940s for the government-sponsored Works Progress Administration, or WPA. This lavishly illustrated volume presents these works for what they truly are: highly accomplished and powerful examples of American art. All are iconic and eye-catching, some are humorous and educational, and many combine modern art trends with commercial techniques of advertising. More than 100 posters have never been published or catalogued in federal records; they are included here to ensure their place in the history of American art and graphic design.

The story of these posters is a fascinating journey, capturing the complex objectives of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal reform program. Through their distinct imagery and clear and simple messages, the WPA posters provide a snapshot of an important era when the U.S. government employed hundreds of artists to create millions of posters promoting positive social ideals and programs and a uniquely American way of life. The resulting artworks now form a significant historical record. More than a mere conveyor of government information, they stand as timeless images of beauty and artistic accomplishment.

Ennis Carter is the founder and director of Social Impact Studios in Philadelphia. Established in 1996, Design for Social Impact is among the first and foremost graphic design workshops devoted exclusively to promoting public-interest issues. Carter is also the driving force behind the WPA Living Archive, an online public project begun in 2002 to preserve the legacy of posters the U.S. government produced between 1935 and 1943 to promote New Deal programs and civic issues.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum

As generations of Americans that have no personal memory of the Roosevelt Era emerge, it is more critical than ever that the lives and legacies of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt be preserved and presented to new generations. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum stands ready to serve as a visible and valuable resource for children and families, educators and students, and an international audience seeking to understand the past to make a better tomorrow. With a newly renovated building and new permanent museum exhibits the Library seeks to honor President Roosevelt’s vision in dedicating his Library to the American people. The Roosevelt Library is one of thirteen presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration. For more information about the Library or its programs call (800) 337-8474 or visit www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu.