Untitled,, (1939)

Lubell 3/6: 161

Ink and graphite pencil drawing (with gouache). Illustration for the Daily Worker, a New York-based Communist newspaper founded in 1924. Like two others, originally in a folder labelled “Washington, DC 1939 (Lubell 161-163) this is a somewhat to very dark and satirical critique of the American economic system at the time. This painting depicts a billboard advertising the "World's Highest Standard of Living…there is no Way like the American Way"…next to two homeless people and a dog in a slum that looks decrepit to the point of dystopia. The sky is almost totally filled with factory smoke, and the only colors used are black and a very light, washed out grey. Hand-drawn graphite pencil lines are used for the border. On the verso is an identifying paper “Daily Worker” and notations on the front refer to measurements and format on the page. Signed W. Milius. One of this Washington, DC series, Lubell 162, is housed in the series WATERCOLORS.

22.9 x 30.5 cm