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Deirdre Miller Mr. Barney December 10, 2008 Art Critique

Miller 2 Deirdre Miller Mr. Barney AP European 10 December 2008 Leyendecker: Uncle Sam at the Helm (1936) I. Impression: The first word that came to mind when looking at this image was strength. This word was brought to my mind by the symbolism of the eagle with his fierce and determined look which is reflected in the fierce and determined gaze of Uncle Sam as he steers the ship. The eagles posture with out-stretched wings and extended talons reminds me of when an eagle is just about to strike. It shows the eagle's great speed and strength as a dominant predator as it launches itself at its target. Uncle Sam with eagle eyes seems to be side-by-side with the eagle, with his eyes fixed on the same objective and with the same total commitment. Also, the image of Uncle Sam steering the ship relates to skill, competence, ability, leadership, and experience. The helmsman must have all of these qualities if he is to guide the ship safely and securely to reach the intended destination. The tilt of the deck and stormy sea adds a sense of the dangers that must be faced in the encounter with untamed nature. But there is a feeling of security in spite of the danger. We feel that the helmsman has been here before and that the roaring sea is nothing new to him. He knows nature and knows how to use the fierceness of the gale to speed the ship all that much faster to the intended destination. Thanks to the strength and skill and knowledge of the helmsman and his obedience to the discipline of the sea we can be sure that he is in command of the situation. We can rest assured that he has learned the lesson as was stated by Sir Francis Bacon: We cannot command nature except by obeying her. We have a sense that the helmsman is in his own element and that he will get us safely through.

Miller 3 This image is not one that would normally be considered as exactly being joyful. On the other hand it certainly is not gloomy. These are not the right words to capture this paintings true emotional dimension. I would say that this painting conveys a different atmosphere, one that is distinctly hopeful. I would choose hopeful rather than joyful as describing the emotional attitude because it includes a sense of danger and challenge and complete opposition to any sense of despair or hopelessness. My emotional response to this painting is the feeling that is found in the sense of purpose and determination and courage and of a shared responsibility under the leadership of Uncle Sam guiding the ship through the rough unpredictable sea. The image makes me feel patriotic knowing that at all times, through peace and war, we have always had wonderful perseverance as a nation because of our high ideals as well as the inspired leadership that we have always found in times of crisis. It reminds me that despite all of our problems America will always be able to whether every storm and finally arrive at the safe harbor.

II. Description: The subject matter consists of the primary figures a sailor at the helm of a ship, the steering wheel that he is holding, and an eagle sweeping in past the helmsman's right shoulder. The helmsman is in front and facing the viewer and is in the costume of Uncle Sam. He is steering the ship against a strong wind and at an angle out of the plane of the picture and toward the left foreground of the painting. The steering wheel has the word Constitution engraved on it is and is in the firm grip of the helmsman. The American-eagle with out-stretched wings and in steep and swift descent has it's talons extended for an attack on some unseen object in the foreground of the painting. The eagle is sweeping in over the right shoulder of the helmsman. The Eagles

Miller 4 eyes, as well as the eyes of the helmsman are focused intently on the left foreground which is the seeming direction of the on-rushing ship. A strong wind is blowing against the helmsman's face and causing the long white locks of hair to flow back in streams over the top and sides of his head. The wind is likewise blowing the white head feathers of the eagle back over the top and sides of it's head. The deck of the ship is sharply tilted and the helmsman must stand with feet far apart to keep his stance. Long sweeping diagonal stretches of white edged with blue behind the figures of the helmsman and the eagle are suggestive of either wind swept clouds or tall canvas sales filling with the wind. Between the swaths of white, and also in the upper left corner of the painting are diagonal swaths of an orange sky. Behind the helmsman and to his lower left the swaths of white edged with blue change to become predominantly blue. These blue and white diagonal swaths become more narrow, concentrated, curved, and finally oval shaped toward the lower right corner of the painting. The blue and white shapes appear to be stylized and stormy waves of the sea that are being blown by the strong winds, or perhaps are streaming off from the ship as it is moving swiftly through the sea and wind. One of the sensory properties included in this painting is the use of line. The strong lines formed by the individual steering handles cause my eyes to search the entire painting. Also, the lines in the background that form the rails of the ship are tilted which causes me to question the stability of the ground that Uncle Sam is standing on. The shapes formed within this painting mainly consist of geometric shapes such as the steering wheel and the small triangles formed within the steering wheels handles. The shapes also found in the painting is that of Uncle Sam and the eagle which are both skeletal forms which are common and create unity in the painting. The colors used in this artwork are bold and strong. The burnt orange in the background of the painting makes the primary figures standout. The dark brown used in the steering wheel and the dark brown in the eagle stands out against the white and burnt orange background. Uncle Sam's is a

Miller 5 creamy peach color and his face is characterized by the rosy pinks used on his cheeks and nose. The hues in the painting are close but Leyendecker blends the different hues to create more realist pictures. The hues that catch my eye the most are those on Uncle Sam. His skin is made up of multiple hues of reds, pinks, tans, and creams to form his skin. Also, the deep browns and light tans found on the eagle is a technique that Leyendecker has perfected. The texture of this piece appears soft and smooth as an oil painting can be. There is certainly evidence of the oils used upon the canvas, but overall the appearance of the painting is crisp and distinct. The value presented within the painting can be found in the sunlight that is reflected off of Uncle Sam, the eagle, and the steering wheel. Also the value is found in the shadows caste downward because of the suns position casting light down at an angle from the top right corner of the painting. The space.... The formal properties of this work of art include the use of repetition in the figures of Uncle Sam and the American eagle. These figures share the same intensity in the eyes which seem to be focused on the left front foreground of the paining. This symbolizes a common goal or sense of purpose. Likewise the figures of Uncle Sam and the eagle show the same white manes of hair or white feathers flowing back over their heads in the face of the on-rushing wind. The shape of the hands of Uncle Sam gripping the steering wheel seem to repeat the shaped of the talons of the eagle which seem to grip the air in readiness for an attack. These strong elements of repetition serve to create a bond of commonality between the bald-eagle (one symbol of America) and Uncle Sam (another symbol of America). Both figures are rushing together in the face of the strong head-wind and seemingly to the same goal. These two symbols of America working to the same goal create a sense of concentrated and common purpose and bring forth a strong feeling of patriotism in the viewer. The large circle of the steering wheel immediately in front of the figure of Uncle Sam draws the eye to focus first of all on these two elements as the primary center of

Miller 6 attention. But then the figure of the eagle draws the eye toward this sort of mirror image of Uncle Sam. The viewer then is drawn first to one and then to the other of these twins. This shifting of the concentration of the viewer between the two figures gives a sense of living movement to the painting. In front of the central circle of the steering wheel is an abstract bell shape in pale lavender with gold letters on it which form the words July 4th 1936. This seems to be symbolic of the Liberty Bell. Two decorative horizontal black lines in back of the figures of Uncle Sam and eagle serve to tie these two figures more intimately together, and at the same time give a sense of the horizon which is not otherwise observable. These horizontal black lines serve also to emphasize the sharp tilt of the deck of the ship and to add to the sense of movement of the ship and the strength of Uncle Sam with his feet firmly planted feet on the moving and slanting ship. The diagonal bands of white and pale blue in the background (representing the clouds and sails and sea) serve to provide a strong and distinct contrast to the dark grays of the eagle's body and wings and dark gray coat of Uncle Sam. Also the strong diagonal lines of the clouds, sails, and sea are in sharp contrast to the dominating central circle of the steering wheel. These contrasting elements of color and shape add a sense of the dramatic to the painting. The word Constitution engraved on the steering wheel together with the two iconic symbols of Uncle Sam and the American eagle give a strong sentiment of American patriotism which provides the overriding unity to this work. The gold of the Constitution steering wheel is symbolic of something that is of the highest value. Adding further to the unity of the painting is the sense of direction toward the same goal that arises from the combined effects of the symbolism of the steering wheel in the hands of Uncle Sam as he directs the ship toward the common object that both he and the eagle seem to be focused on. The medium used in the creation of this portrait was oil paint on canvas. The technique used to create this image was the use of painting with various brushes and oil paints upon a canvas. The

Miller 7 artist has painted what I would call a sheen onto the principal figures of Uncle Sam, the eagle, and the steering wheel which give them an almost ceramic like quality. This seems to give these figures a feeling of being almost like ceramic dolls or perfect or idealized models which seems right for these iconic symbols of America. On the other hand the orange sky is painted in a very splotchy manner which contrasts with the smoothness of the ceramic doll quality of the figures and gives a mood of strength and toughness to balance the painting.

III. Interpretation: This painting was designed for the cover of Saturday Evening Post magazine for July 4th, 1936. America at that time was in the middle of the Great Depression. The Great Depression had caused many people to loose confidence in the American dream. The land of opportunity was now the land of desperation. The land of hope and optimism had become the land of despair. Americans were questioning all the basic principles on which they had based their societies democracy, capitalism, individualism. The Dust Bowl also had ruined many farmers in the midwest. Many Dust Bowl farmers packed their families into cars and sought work in the agricultural fields or cities further to the West and their lives as independent farm owners was gone forever. From 1929 and 1932 the average American family income went down by 40%, from $2,300 to $1,500. In Lyendecker's painting of Uncle Sam at the Helm, the occurrence of the word Constitution on the steering wheel that is in the hands of Uncle Sam seems very significant. Many people in the 1930's felt that the president, Franklin Roosevelt, was destroying the Constitution with his administration which was known as the New Deal. Many people believed that the New Deal was concentrating power in the Federal government and weakening the State governments and

Miller 8 that this was against the Constitution. Some people thought that the states would wind up as nothing more that districts within a national government instead of being the largely independent states within a federal government which the Constitution was based on. This was also a time when major foreign powers such as Russia (under Stalin), Germany (under Hitler), and Italy (under Mussolini) lived under dictatorships. In the early 1030's these dictatorships had seemed to be more successful than America in dealing with the world wide depression of the economy that was going on at that time. There were many people who felt that Communism and Fascism had proven to be a better system for dealing with the modern economic problems than the freedom that American's had enjoyed. The time from 1935 through 1937 was also the time in which Franklin Roosevelt tried to get his famous Court Packing scheme approved through Congress. In 1935 several New Deal laws had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. In an effort to get his own way regardless of what the Constitution or the Supreme Court said, President Franklin Roosevelt came up with a plan that would allow him to appoint one extra Supreme Court Justice for each Justice was was already over the age of seventy, up to a total of six. He avoided bringing out this Court Packing plan in 1936 because he was afraid that it would give his opponents in the Republican Party a major issue that would cause him problems in getting re-elected. But after he was re-elected by a large majority in the Electoral College in 1936 he was ready to try out the Court Packing scheme. In February of 1937 he had his supporters in Congress presented the court packing scheme to the public. In spite of the President's popularity at that time, this was widely seen as an unconstitutional grab for power and many moderate and Southern Democrats aligned themselves with the Republicans and this brought an end to the early New Deal coalition as more and more people began to question the wisdom of letting Franklin Roosevelt have his way in adding new powers to the Federal government. Therefore, in 1936, a painting like Lyendecker's Uncle Sam at the Helm takes on a

Miller 9 special meaning. Lyendecker seems to be restating the basic faith in the American Constitution and American political wisdom which believes that freedom is better than dictatorship even if it sometimes leads to temporary economic problems and that we shouldn't let a President, no matter how popular he may be, to make changes to the basic principles of American government as established by the Constitution. By combining symbols of Uncle Sam, the American eagle, the Constitution, the Forth of July, and the Liberty Bell the artist seems to be calling American's to remember their past which is the only way to maintain what the Preamble to the Constitution calls the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. Leyendecker (March 23, 1874 July 25, 1951) was one of the most popular 20th century American illustrators. He was known for his men's fashion advertisements (particularly the Arrow Collar Man). He was the most popular illustrator (before Norman Rockwell) for the covers for the Saturday Evening Post magazine. Leyendecker was born on March 23, 1874, in Montabaur, Germany. In 1882, his family immigrated to Chicago, Illinois. In his late teen years he worked for the Chicago engraving firm of J. Manz & Company. After completing his first commercial commission of sixty Bible illustrations for the Powers Brothers Company, Leyendecker enrolled in the Chicago Art Institute. In September 1896 Leyendecker left America to study in Paris for two years. After moving back to Chicago, Leyendecker got his first commission for a Saturday Evening Post cover in 1899. The Saturday Evening Post was the most popular magazine in the country in those days. In the next forty-four years Lyendecker would do 322 covers for that magazine. Some of the most iconic American images of the early 20th Century were provided by Lyendecker, including: the annual New Year Baby, the pudgy redgarbed Santa Claus, flowers for Mother's Day, and firecrackers on the 4th of July. Lyendecker was a successful commercial artist until his death at age 77 in1951. Major influence on Lyendecker's art was the poster art of Jules Chret, Alphonse Mucha, and Henri de Toulouse

Miller 10 Lautrec who had been commercial artists like him. He was himself a major influence on his successor as the principal artist for Saturday Evening Post, Norman Rockwell. The original function of this painting was to serve as the cover art for the Saturday Evening Post for July 4th, 1936. It is one of the 332 covers that Lyendecker provided to Saturday Evening Post in his firty-four years of work with them.

IV. Judgment: I believe this piece of art is superior to most of the commercial art work of the 20th Century and that it ranks high among Lyendecker's work. Much of the popularity of his art has to do with the age of optimism in which he began his work in the late 1800's (he painted from 1897 to 1951). Many of his works reflect the ordinary American's interest in sports (such as baseball and football) and popular leaders (such as Washington, Robert E. Lee, Eisenhower) and the social success of fashionable ladies and handsome young men (his advertisement art for Arrow Collars). This particular work, Uncle Sam at the Helm, reflects another of his popular motifs: American Patriotism. I rather prefer his style of idealized and handsome people over the more photographic style of Norman Rockwell. This is reflected in Uncle Sam at the Helm in which the figures take on a rather modeled appearance of the perfect stereotype of the symbol of the American eagle in flight and the stern but fatherly Uncle Sam. To me this seems more in the mode of the Ancient Greek art that sought for the godlike perfection of humans rather than the gritty and prosaic realism of real, ordinary people with their warts and all

. Works Cited

Miller 11 http://www.answers.com/topic/j-c-leyendecker http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/8aa/8aa210.htm