Despite its perceived name, the Great Depression was nothing short of immense economic turmoil and distress. The Great Depression began when the stock market crashed in October of 1929 and lasted until 1939. This decade of colossal tragedy left millions of Americans without work, living in poverty and despair. Although, the origin of depression surfaced around the ever plummeting economy, the ill effects were seen throughout the entire country with high unemployment and contrasting low production and fertility rates.
Moreover, the Great Depression was distinctly documented by American Photographer Walker Evans. His most famous work consists of a series of photographs taken in Alabama of those in penury, which he later produced for Fortune Magazine. Evans traveled to Alabama, where he encountered impoverished families like the Fields pictured in Figure 1. Evans lived with these families and photographed their lives and captured their daily
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Originally from New Jersey, Lange worked as a photographer in San Francisco. One of her most famous works of art is the Migrant Mother (Fig 6). In 1936, Lange captured one of the most iconic images of the Great Depression. The photograph was taken in Nipomo, California where a woman is captured clearly worn down and stressed cradling her infant. The photograph has a sense of chaos to it with the overcrowding of elements in the left side of the image. Also, there is an element of comfort yet sadness with the mother cradling her baby, knowing she cannot provide a comfortable lifestyle. Similarly, the effect of the Depression can be seen in the women’s facial expression and evident onset aging. Due to the sparse amount of food, resources and money, a large fertility drop occurred in the United States during this time period. The Great Depression had a huge impact in that it caused a great amount of human