1. Kara Walker is an African American artist who is well known for her contemporary work. As with most contemporary works, her paintings, performances, prints, and other works delve in social issues and politics, as she explores race, gender, and identity in her works. She is best known for her silhouette works, where she depicts and event or story, yet the entire work is in shadow. While this was her main style, she also worked with sculptures, her most famous one being A Subtlety, a monstrous set of sculptures and structures depicting violence and oppression of races and social classes. 2. This work was commissioned by Creative Time, a non-profit, arts organization. This groups goal was to encourage creative art in the United States, by merging art with everyday aspects of life. For example, they aided with New York’s infrastructure reconstruction, and encourages artworks to be erected in parks and other public structures in the city. Walker’s work was one of these works, as it was erected in an old sugar mill/factory in New York City. The irony of a work about oppressed sugar workers being made in a former sugar factory was intended by the artist. 3. This art was constructed and completed in 2014. A show for this art’s display was open for roughly three months (May-July). The United States has become a modern industrial powerhouse, where the values and rights of the workers are heavily respected. However, this does not mean that there is no worker exploitation around
In society, many make a living by working for others to get the necessities they need. Workers face many struggles such as wage cuts, horrendous work conditions, an increase in hours, due to these conditions they are labeled ‘wage slaves.’ These individuals have no choice but to work in these conditions. The growth of industry in the United States made corruption easier and made employers richer while the poor stayed poor. The employers justify their actions by arguing that the employees have a choice to go and work for someone else. However, workers do not have the choice to work for others since most employers were using the same method to make a profit. Workers are treated unfairly, but they use many effective techniques such as strikes
In the document, "Formulating the Ideal American Worker: Public Responses to Constantin Meunier's 1913-14 Exhibition of Labor Imagery", Melissa Dabakis discusses the topics of labor and working classes. She examines Meunier’s labor imagery. Examining the difficulties in the labor classes and how the Meunier exhibit toured the country in 1913 and
The work that these laborers did was degrading and dehumanizing. They were given one small task to complete a bigger goal, but they were never able to get the satisfaction of completing a product. This was very detrimental to the mental state of the workers and did not help them to make better quality products, because they only had one small insignifiant job in the whole process. They were easily replaceable and the work was so simple that children could easily do it. Document C shows that ten years before this time people specialized in a job, but as time progressed the job was subdivided and subdivided until the point that instead of knowing the whole trade, the workers know one small part of the whole job. The owners did this for cost cutting and to make production faster. No matter how hard one worked they often did not find joy in their work and they were unable to advance very far in the company. The labor unions did little in helping them to move up in the world if anything it made it harder for the workers. They had to sign contracts saying they would not join unions or else they would lose their jobs. Document D shows the contract that many had to sign saying they would join or be affiliated with the labor unions while employed, the companies tried to make it sound appealing, giving the guise that they would make life better and change things for the better if the workers
Throwing to the wind the artistry of craftsmanship. . The mind frame of American capitalism was forever altered - from one that cherished the creativity and or dexterity of labor, to one, which manipulated and oversimplified the division of labor in order to maximize profit. In expanding cities, Big business’, the corporate world, began to dominate the market. The trade a craftsman once took pride in became dismembered – each man allowed assembly of only a fraction of the product. The prosperity of the corporation undermined that of the individual. Such reforms of the work process created an abundance of profitable businesses. Despite the fact that workers risked their lives in the industrial environment they received lower wages, as the available jobs required little skill. The average factory worker had to work “15 to 18” hours a day in order to earn a “living wage” in 1860. All the while the government disregarded the bleak circumstances of the factory worker, allowing big business’ owners to control the market. As these once pioneering minds began to apply their tact to the economy, they came to realize their cumbersome power and the bourgeois began to dwindle. The affluent prospered, and the lower class fought destitution with no viable prospect of government
On March 25, 1911 a disastrous tragedy hit our nation that forced a needed change in the factory industry. In New York’s Greenwich Village a fire broke out in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, one of the most prominent factories around owned by Mr. Isaac Harris and Mr. Max Blanck. Approximately 146 workers, mostly women, died in this fire, making it the most catastrophic fire incident in New York City. Just before this accident, these same women were on strike for the horrible and unsafe conditions they faced in such factories, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory being the most influential reason for the strike. This accident was more than an accident; it was society neglecting to take action in order to provide safer conditions for female factory workers, it was the lack of care in the nation at the time for women and their rights.
It always begins with a promise. A promise for better living conditions, higher wage, more opportunities, etc. This is when hope is established within an hard working individual. In the video, “New England cotton mills” and the reading, “Life in the Iron Mills”, there are similarities in regards to working conditions, solidarity among workers, and owner attitudes. Both mills show identifiable occasions of mistreatment of workers, although there are clear differences in quality and benefits offered by each institution. The purpose of this essay is to compare discuss issues of worker mistreatment, solidarity, class, and fulfillment of everyday life in regards to work.
Renee Cox, as an African American woman and artist, uses her body and identity to start a discussion on the Black experience in America. Besides representing a population of minority artists, the female and the non-white, her art has affected society with her brazen approach to her craft. Cox’s significance comes from her open display of race and sex. In many of her pieces, nudity and the celebration of the African American experience is the focus. In addition to this, her medium of choice, mixed media and photography, is opening an outlet of art that isn’t traditionally used. In essence, Renee Cox is an artist that can pave the way for future artists by diversifying through medium, race, and sex.
On March 25, 1911, at an New York City sweatshop, a deadly fire took many lives. For some of those workers it was their last workshift they worked. Many whom were young immigrants. It's was about 4:45 PM , almost time for the workers to go home after a hard long day of being in a hot, cramped, and a very poor condition workroom. They made mostly women’s shirtwaists which was very popular at the time.
The principal decade of 1900 denoted the purported the dynamic period in the Assembled States. The US had quite recently experienced a staggering increment in the modern development which prompted a monstrous work issue. There was a quick move from agrarian to urban culture. Therefore, there was an enormous blast in the extent of the populace in urban regions. Settlers from various parts of the globe ran in the urban communities in the Joined States. The greater part of them was in a scan for work in industrial facilities. There was a clog, a condition that prompted one of the most exceedingly bad work issues. The working conditions in the production lines at times were despicable. The working hours were too long, for the most part, more than 10 hours and the wages were too low with normal of $500 to $600 every year. Government control of production line operation was insufficient and subsequently, there were uncontrolled manufacturing plant mischances. Many individuals were executed while others supported wounds. The period additionally denoted the ascent of tyke work in plants. Offspring of as low as under 16 years functioned as unskilled workers in hazardous industrial facility condition. These specialists lived in poor ghettos in smudged conditions. The once lovely condition was supplanted by stopgap structures that obliged poor specialists.
For 6 days a week, many people women as young as 10 years old, poured out into the streets ready to head into work to the Triangle Shirtwaist factory. The American dream depended on their willingness to work and they worked for 14 hours for at most $2. In these many hours of labor, they worked in horrible conditions, not allowed to stop, not even a drink or a bathroom break. They were also expected to make no mistakes and if got hurt, needed to keep working no matter what. At the end of the day, they were expected to do one more thing, letting the operators check their purse so that no shirts were stolen.
Their efforts to gain equal rights were displayed all over America, and let the poor conditions of the factory and labor system and what the effects it had on the community be known to the public. Until the factory workers began to strike back against their employers, the conditions of labor in factories weren’t seen as an issue. Although their efforts quickly failed, Ebenezer Breed, Micajah Pratt and Benjamin Newhall’s careers reflected the capital transformation of shoe manufacturing. They worked to increase their social status early on, by switching from a household system to the factory systems, but workers realized that the revolution was a loss of freedom, rather than a way gain power and control.
KARA WALKER ARTIST ANALYSIS BIOGRAPHY Kara Walker born in 1969 is an African American contemporary painting, silhouessitist, print maker and installation artist. Through her art she explores and looks at Race, gender, sexuality, violence and idenitiy. Her father was a painter, she was heavily inspired by her father. At the start of her carear she was uncomfortable with experimenting with race, when she went to Rhode Island School of design she starting experimenting with race in her art.
In this eye-opening look at the contemporary American scourge of labor abuse and outright slavery, journalist and author Bowe visits locations in Florida, Oklahoma and the U.S.-owned Pacific island of Saipan, where slavery cases have been brought to light as recently as 2006. There, he talks to affected workers, providing many moving and appalling first-hand accounts. This book deserves the attention of anyone living, working and consuming in America.
Aaron Douglas was born May 26, 1899 and died February 2, 1979. He was the husband of Althea Mae Sawyer, and “the father of black American art” (Biography.com). He became “a leading figure in the artistic and literary movement known as the Harlem Renaissance” (Biography.com) with the use of “contemporary design and ancient Egyptian sources” (metmuseum.org). His art gave off powerful messages concerning the life and culture of African Americans, and although died he left a lasting legacy, because he was able to change the way of communicating for the African Americans through art. Two of Aaron Douglas most famous graphic designs are “Let my People Go” and “The Judgement Day”.
The work of Lewis Hines as a photographer is incredible. Without words, one is able to relate what is going on. With the photos, child labor is clearly noted. Some of his pictures show faces of lost youth including adolescent girls who seem to have been working since their early ages. There are also photos of children around 11 years of age working at the mills. Photos of boys selling paper on the streets are part of his work as well. One of the boys seems to have a broken arm. I would interpret this as punishment for not doing the job well. There are also grown men and women passing by and they do not seem bothered at all. This shows the ignorance of the society