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Posters from the WPA

We are getting a kick out of these old posters from the Works Progress Administration. Some are pretty funny (see "MILK: For Summer Thirst"), others are quite beautiful, and all offer a glimpse at American life during the 1930s and 40s.

 
 

The WPA was one of the first government programs that included support for the arts, and these posters stand as a testament to the program's power. You can find the full collection, By the People, For the People: Posters from the WPA here. To purchase a copy of any of the WPA posters, find the desired print here, write down the reproduction number and contact the Photoduplication Service of the Library of Congress. Prices depend on size and type of print.

(Thanks, Amanda!)

(Re-edited from a post originally published 4.16.09 - JL)

Comments (31)

I love these!

posted by Elizcrtv on April 16th 2009 at 7:53pm
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At long last, posters that are actually good.

posted by Sydney on April 16th 2009 at 8:06pm
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I love the "Sew For Victory" poster! And perhaps I am being dense, but what is up with the "6 8" penguins?!

posted by clampers on April 16th 2009 at 8:57pm
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Lovely posters - what a great resource. Thanks muchly. Bit of a pity that the Library of Congress database is not more user friendly, though!

posted by JoJenks on April 16th 2009 at 9:09pm
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I'm with clampers - what's with 6 8? Its my favourite.

posted by catspajamas on April 16th 2009 at 9:17pm
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Poster promoting education and civic activity, showing two columns of penguins, six on the left, eight on the right.

SUBJECTS
Penguins--1930-1950.
Education--New York (State)--New York--1930-1950.
Community service--New York (State)--New York--1930-1950.
Posters--1930-1950.
Screen prints--Color--1930-1950.
MEDIUM
1 print on board (poster) : silkscreen, color.
CALL NUMBER
POS - WPA - NY .01 .S58, no. 1
REPRODUCTION NUMBER
LC-USZC2-962 DLC (color film copy slide)
SPECIAL TERMS OF USE
No known restrictions on publication.

REPOSITORY
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA
DIGITAL ID
(color film copy slide) cph 3b48862 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3b48862

posted by catspajamas on April 16th 2009 at 9:25pm
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http://www.rainfall.com/posters/WPA/1238.htm

Another place to get these.

posted by catspajamas on April 16th 2009 at 9:43pm
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WPA, WWII and others subjects in high quality prints are available at:
http://www.vintagraph.com

posted by NavySeabee on April 16th 2009 at 9:50pm
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Thanks, NavySeabee! Just blew $$$ on vintagraph.com.

posted by catspajamas on April 16th 2009 at 10:04pm
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Wow...totally buying "Don't Play with Firecrackers"!!!!

THANK YOU! This is a gem!
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/I?wpapos:1:./temp/~ammem_Fk42::displayType=1:m856sd=cph:m856sf=3b48841:@@@wpapo

posted by UWSretreat on April 16th 2009 at 11:20pm
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Thanks all for the pointers on where to buy these posters easily!

posted by JoJenks on April 17th 2009 at 4:46am
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many are big enough that if you have a good printer, you can print a little one at home

posted by GreaterYesterday on April 17th 2009 at 10:48am
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These posters are cool. Look at these ORIGINAL vintage European posters I found here: www.vepca.com They are stunning!

posted by jencarroll01 on April 17th 2009 at 1:09pm
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Buy them here too:
http://www.zazzle.com/lc_wpa

posted by cindycindy on April 17th 2009 at 1:21pm
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I love these posters - always have. Thanks for featuring them!

posted by Miss Jess on April 17th 2009 at 1:46pm
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All the posters use a limited number of colours. Less is definitely more. Gorgeous. Magical. They make me want to do what ever they tell me to do!

posted by TaniaTingel on April 17th 2009 at 4:45pm
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i recommend also checking out your state/local parks department and sometimes even your transit system - many of mine are printing posters they have recently commissioned and they are beautiful and definitely have a connection to the time when i am using them. i think i will still appreciate them many years from now when i remember living in this town and using these resources :)

posted by akostalas on April 17th 2009 at 5:01pm
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Is it just me, or does that look like Katie Couric on the milk poster? Maybe her mom was a wpa poster model.

REPORT DOG BITES

love it.

posted by birdablaze on April 18th 2009 at 8:10pm
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Re "6 8", I think the idea is that counting the penguins will teach school children how to do simple addition.

It's so damn hot... milk was a bad choice.
- ron burgundy

I couldn't resist.

posted by kmarie on April 20th 2009 at 4:37pm
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A recycled post, complete w/recycled comments (note the dates!) ... what's up, AT?

Great post, and great recommendations from the rest of you on other places to check out.

posted by Melissa at The Mess Hall on September 18th 2009 at 8:29am
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I ditto mirandabee -- why the repost? Not that the posters aren't great, but we just saw them in April...

I'm glad they recycled the post, I missed it the first time. Thanks for the info. I love these and plan to buy several.

Recycled or not this was a good post from April.

I have 3 of these on my refrigerator along with two others by my sink. Instead of buying prints, I took the high quality images from Library of Congress website, vectorized them myself using Vector Magic, had them professionally printed on glossy 5x7" paper, and attached adhesive magnetic sheets I cut to fit on the backs of the refrigerator placed ones.

Cost next to nothing ($3 for the prints and $2 for two pages of the magnet sheets) and turned out great.

I love these posters. Simple, yet beautiful.

these are gorgeous.

nouniard, would you mind sharing where you got the printing done? $3 for a 5x7 from a vector file seems reasonable.

Love these posters but umm...did anyone else notice the section labeled "Jews". Not Judaism or even Jewish. Just "Jews".

posted by I Love Upstate on September 18th 2009 at 3:29pm
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