The artwork titled “Arkansas Family, Seven Months in California, Feb. 1936” was created by Dorothea Lange in the year 1936. This piece is a black and white photograph that falls under the genre of Social Realism. It captures the essence of a family who had relocated from Arkansas to California, reflecting the broader socio-economic themes prevalent during the Great Depression.
In the artwork, a family is depicted in an austere landscape, likely their temporary abode in California after leaving Arkansas. In the foreground, various garments and beddings are hung on a makeshift clothesline, suggesting the transitory and challenging conditions the family endures. To the right, a man is engaged in the labor of managing a stack of wood, possibly for a fire, while two women and a child stand nearby, engaged in daily activities with a backdrop of rolling hills under an overcast sky. The photograph exudes a sense of perseverance and resilience amidst adversity, characteristic of Lange’s evocative documentation of migrant families and their plights during the era.
