Basil Hawkins
American, 1903 - 1982Jobs, n.d.
Not on view
Lithograph on paper
Dimensions15 1/8 × 10 5/8 in. (38.4 × 27 cm)
Image: 10 3/4 × 7 1/2 in. (27.3 × 19.1 cm)
Gift of Mr. Jack B. Pierson in memory of Mr. Robert Martin Purcell, 1979.175
In Jobs, Basil Hawkins illustrates a mob of angry protesters who fight against their employers for better wages and working conditions within the factories seen in the far background. The man in the foreground holds up a sign stating “WE WANT,” which gives a clear message as to his motivation—that they want their employers to meet their needs. All the men are shown with their mouths open, chanting loudly for fair working conditions.
Hawkins’s composition was originally conceived as a cover page illustration for a union workers’ songbook intended for publication by the United Auto Workers. Although the songbook was never published, Hawkins was sufficiently satisfied with the image to reproduce it, with some modification, as a lithographic image entitled Jobs.
Hawkins’s pen and wash composition, Strike, was most likely inspired by the “sit-down” strikes of 1936-37, which gained national attention when striking workers brought automobile production at General Motors’ assembly plants in Flint to a standstill. Although Hawkins created Strike a few years after the Flint strike, the image attests to the new-found power of labor unions that resulted from the actions of the Flint workers.
Hawkins’ composition was originally conceived as a cover page illustration for a union workers’ songbook intended for publication by the United Auto Workers. Although the songbook was never published, Hawkins was sufficiently satisfied with the image to reproduce it, with some modification, as a lithographic image entitled Jobs.
