Charles Alston shared the fate of other well-qualified African American artists when the WPA denied him a supervisory position. He went on to form the Harlem Artists Guild with artist Augusta Savage and bibliophile Arthur Schomburg. The guild was successful in lobbying the WPA on behalf of many African American artists. As a result, an unprecedented number of African American artists had the opportunity to work on the Harlem Hospital Center murals project.

In addition to the master artists who designed and supervised each mural, a number of assistant artists went on to illustrious art careers. Beauford Delaney (1901–79) was one such individual. Although a part of the Harlem art scene, Delaney was also entrenched in the Greenwich Village artistic community, and embraced poetry and jazz as well as the visual arts. He became known for his abstract expressions of light. Morgan Smith (1910–93) who assisted Vertis Hayes on his Harlem Hospital mural became famous, along with his twin brother Marvin, for photographs of the Harlem community. Tragedy also marked the workers at the hospital. After being laid off in 1937, assistant artist Louis Vaughn committed suicide, underscoring the vital importance of the jobs the WPA provided.

Though WPA salaries were small, they made it possible for the artists to survive and do their work.
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Group photo of WPA artists.
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Vertis Hayes and his assistants working on Pursuit of Happiness.
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