Rediscovering the WPA Poster Art of Our National Parks
History / Biography
Douglas Leen
November 2023
ISBN 9798218185473
Hardcover, 224 pages

Between 1938 and 1941, the National Park Service commissioned WPA artists to create a set of posters for the growing National Park System. These were not just ordinary posters but handcrafted prints using the silk screen method. The onset of WWII derailed the project, with only fourteen parks receiving their prints. After the war ended, these posters disappeared into the dustbin of history. In 1971, the author of this book, then a seasonal ranger in Grand Teton National Park, discovered one surviving print stashed in a park barn, thus beginning a lifelong search for others in this set. Only 1,400 prints were initially made, and today only forty copies have been found. Two park posters have never been located, although photos of them exist. This book tells the story of the early history, rediscovery, and republication of this rare and unique art. The single surviving poster found in a barn served as the template, along with the chance discovery of thirteen black-and-white photographs in park archives, to laboriously reconstruct this unique set of national park poster art. Once the historical reproductions reached the public, demand grew exponentially, and other parks sought WPA-style posters of their own parks. Today, more than sixty of our national parks now have handmade silk screen prints. The first half of this book focuses on the historic prints, and the remaining half shares how these modern designs were created. This book also includes a miniature silk screen print of Grand Teton National Park—the first historic print in this series that inspired this book. More/less