Skating in Central Park

Agnes Tait (1894-1981), Skating in Central Park, 1934. Oil on canvas, 33 3/4" x 48." Smithsonian American Art Museum, from the U.S. Department of Labor.

I noticed while looking through the New Deal art that a lot of it consisted of murals with dramatic depictions of manual labor like farming or construction. So, I like this piece because it shows the relaxed environment that people living through the depression needed. With all the hard work and struggles during that decade, simple distractions like ice skating allowed people to come together, take a break, and relieve stress. I think Tait captured an experience on canvas that everyone was searching for and needed.

And for some reason I can't post comments on the other posts so I'll put them here:

Tenement Flats: I like this painting because there's an inviting feel to it. Everyone's doors are open, there's someone hanging out of the window, and you can't tell through the little detailed faces, but the body language suggests a friendly family like environment. Even though they're not all technically family, they've all come outside to socialize with each other as if they were one big family occupying these flats. And while all that's going on, in the background, there's this oldish looking woman all alone walking up to these upscale homes. It seems like a great contrast to depict the separateness of classes even though everyone could have been financially struggling at the time.

14th Street at 6th Avenue: I know zero about NY (is this even a depiction of NY?) so this is all speculation but this looks like a shopping district, and I'm pretty sure that's snow on the ground since everyone appears heavily dressed. It kind of looks like a mixing of classes. I see well dressed women there, possibly to shop, and there are a few lesser dressed individuals and vendors. So I feel like this painting is conveying the same sort of message as the Tenement Flats painting of a distinction between classes that seems sort of silly during a depression. But instead of an obvious separation, here there is a mixing and coming together.