Albert James Webb (1891–1975) was a talented New York City painter, etcher and lithographic artist, Albert James Webb studied at the Art Students League. He first exhibited his art in New York and elsewhere at the end of the first World War. Albert James Webb mostly painted during this time, and he is not known to have created any original etchings or lithographs before the beginning of the Great Depression in 1930.
Most Albert Webb's etchings, drypoint engravings and lithographs date from 1935 to 1940 and were commissioned by the New York Division of the famous Works Progress Administration. Founded by President Roosevelt in 1935, the W.P.A. actively assisted most American artists during the penniless years of the Depression. Not surprisingly, many of Albert James Webb's finest prints during this period portray the lives of laborers or of the working poor. Also, none of Webb's art commissioned by the W.P.A. was published in editions larger than 25 impressions.
