On view at the Connecticut River Museum in Essex, “New Deal Art Along the River” examines artwork created during the depths of the Great Depression; surprisingly, it is anything but depressing.

Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal programs provided jobs of all kinds, including establishing The Federal Art Project (1935 to 1943) for out-of-work artists, who were paid to paint murals and paintings, create sculptures and teach art classes. The art was displayed in public places — schools, libraries or government buildings — where all Americans could enjoy it.

Much of the artwork, dubbed “The American Scene,” showcased regional history, landscapes and people.

The Connecticut River Museum exhibit, created by Amy Trout, the museum’s curator, focuses on Depression-era artwork that represents regional artists or has the Connecticut River Valley and shoreline as its subject matter.

Trout has been studying this topic for more than a decade. While working at the New Haven Historical Society (now New Haven Museum) she curated an exhibit on the Federal Art Project in New Haven and wrote an article about it that garnered interest around the state.

“When the Connecticut Humanities (Council created) the Connecticut at Work project, they were looking to the past,” Trout says. “They said, ‘What about the Depression and all those government programs that put people to work?’ They contacted me because I’d done a lot of research on it. Over the past two years, the whole subject has been revived and I’ve been doing talks and lectures throughout the state.”

Then, ironically, Trout says, “a really cool” pencil and watercolor sketch was donated to the museum and, when she turned it over, she saw “FERA” noted on the back, which stands for Federal Emergency Relief Agency, so she knew it was a Works Progress Administration piece.

“It was part of that whole alphabet soup of programs President Roosevelt put together, under the umbrella of the WPA,” Trout explains.

“That wonderful donation sparked me to get out all my research again on the Federal Art Project. When you look at the art and you know about the time period, it all kind of comes together and you get this sort of wonderful light-bulb effect of realizing that this artwork really does illuminate a whole decade,” Trout says. “Most people think of one thing when they think of the 1930s — the Depression. This is a surprise to a lot of people to see artwork that’s not about gloom and doom and poverty and problems, but it’s really also about everyday life. The exhibit is supposed to give people a little insight into what was going on along the river and the shoreline during the 1930s.” 

The artwork

In addition to murals, the Federal Art Project commissioned thousands of works described as “easel art.” The Connecticut River Museum exhibit includes about 20 such works, as well as several sculptures. Subjects range from waves crashing on the shores of Long Island Sound to a vivid, people-filled scene of a free concert in Hartford’s Bushnell Park. Media include oils, watercolors, pastels and charcoal.

“The Federal Art Project paid all kinds of artists; they didn’t have to be classically, formally trained, although a lot of them were,” Trout says. “Many of them were not well known — they were our friends and neighbors that lived among us and also painted.”

Several of the paintings in the exhibit inform viewers about aspects of the era with which they might not be familiar.

For example, pointing to “On the Rail,” a watercolor of two men on a sailboat by Ygnve Soderberg, a prolific artist of maritime subjects, Trout says, “People don’t realize yachting had a kind of revival in the 1930s. Not because of rich people — it was the Depression. But if you had a little sailboat, it was really considered a cheap sport. Essex in particular became known as a yachting or recreational boating center during the 1930s because the boatyards were desperately in need of work, so (building) for small boaters became very popular. It’s an interesting fact that many people don’t know.”

Referring to an oil painting by Nathaniel Little titled “Gravel Street, Mystic” Trout says, “I picked it because I just love the cove and the river and the little sailor. It’s a slice of life. It could be today or a hundred years ago. It’s really reflective of these small river or shoreline towns where people had connection to the water for recreation or work.”

A number of the paintings illustrate the kind of work people engaged in locally during the Depression. These include “Gathering March Hay,” an oil painting by Archie Tillinghast.

“It has a surrealist quality to it, this sort of sandy landscape. It almost looks like a mirage with the water in the back. It’s very unusual,” Trout says. “But marsh hay was something that grew along the river, in the brackish waters. It was an important commodity for farmers on the river and shoreline who used it for all kinds of things.”

A series of four paintings by Harold Barbour of Higganum show both women and men working in the shade tobacco industry that was so important to Connecticut, and specifically the river valley, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

“Tobacco is such an odd industry. We don’t think of it in Connecticut. We think of tobacco growing in the really warm climates,” Trout says. “But they made this artificial environment with these tents and things, and it was a major industry here.”

Commenting on the intent of the Federal Art Project and its interpretation in the museum’s exhibit, Trout says, “There was this populist agenda in the Roosevelt administration to get artwork to the people. It was supposed to be artwork that represented us. So it was about the community you were in. If it was Stonington and Mystic, you’ve got views of Stonington and Mystic. If it was Portland, you got views of workers working in Portland. It was art for the masses, art for the people.”

What: “New Deal Art Along the River” art exhibit

Where: Connecticut River Museum, 67 Main St., Essex

When: Through June 22; the museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Cost: Admission is $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for children ages 6 to 12, and free for children age 6 and younger.

More info: Visit ctrivermuseum.org, or call (860) 767-8269.