Visions of the 1930s: An exhibition on struggle and triumph at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

 

"MEN EXPLOITS MEN" (John Kenneth Galbraith) (1935)

    “Art for the Millions”: American Culture and Politics in the 1930s at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as suggested by its title, is more than a collection of artworks- it tells the story of the people. This exhibition was a powerful lens to capture the heartbeat of American labor workers revolting against capitalism and exploitation. Social realism takes center stage in the artworks of this exhibit, depicting the realities of everyday life and focusing on the marginalized majority. In the museum halls, each frame becomes a portal inviting visitors to witness the era of the Great Depression, including widespread poverty, unemployment, and financial collapse. This exhibition does not only navigate the social hardships at the time and call for revolution but also exposes the evolving relationship with machinery. The three themes evident in the exhibition offer original visual narratives that parallel the Joad family's journey in the search for a better life in Grapes of Wrath. 

The industrial symphony: The relationship between working class and machinery 

Machinery and Large Scale Industry (1933)

    As one moves through the exhibition, the artwork shifts its focus to the dynamic relationship between individuals and machinery. A series of abstract lithographs put the industrial machines against people, showing the history of many working families becoming sacrifices in the name of capital accumulation through technological advancements. These prints integrating humans and machinery emphasized the changes in traditional labor practices and the displacement of the workforce, as the humans are illustrated as struggling to break through a mass of mechanical parts. Just like in the prints where the wheels of the machinery symbolize the battle of the workforce post-mechanization, in the Grapes of Wrath, the tractor becomes the symbol of displacement of the Joad family. As this family witnesses the tractor towing the land, they realize the loss of their home. 

Unity and collective identity 

Floyd and Lucille Burroughs on porch, Alabama
 (1936)

    Nonetheless, the most striking feature of this exhibition is documenting the harsh realities of exploitative labor practices through a series of candid photographs showing the widespread poverty and loss endured in rural communities. The theme of resilience of the human spirit becomes a central theme in both the exhibit and the film Grapes of Wrath. There is a solid visual and thematic connection between the everyday photographs in the museum and the portrayal of the Joad family in the film. Even though the photographs of farmers depict the uncertainty and challenging conditions, they also show the strength and fortitude of familial relationships of these workers, a key feature also seen in the film. This specific feature of the photographs in the museum makes one think of the last words of Mama Joad: “We are the people that live”. As evident through the photographs and the Joad family, despite the dire circumstances, the faces of migrant workers projected hope and dignity, refusing to be dehumanized by the economic hardships and oppressed by the injustices of landlords. 

Murmurs of Change: Desire for Revolution 

HELP FIGHT AGAINST BOSS TERROR (1935)

     

    Amidst the portraits of hardship and the mechanization of society, one could observe a powerful and resonant desire for revolution. The artworks capture the discontent of the working class and the yearning for an equitable society. The central pieces of the exhibition were posters with bold and striking imagery, vibrant red color, and powerful slogans such as “Unity Against Boss terror” and “For the abolition of bankrupt capitalism”. These posters were used as a powerful and enduring form of protest art. The posters were the perfect medium to advocate for social change and highlight mass injustices, as they were able to convey powerful messages to the viewer even at a brief glance. Grapes of Wrath shows how a working family like the Joads falls victim to the economic structure of capitalism, and just like in the posters,  the "boss terror" (landlords) has the power to evict families for mechanization and profit-driven motives.