Arthur "Art" Young was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 cartoon

Cartoon

A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...

ist and writer. He is most famous for his socialist

Socialism

Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...

 cartoons, especially those drawn for the left wing political magazine The Masses

The Masses

The Masses was a graphically innovative magazine of socialist politics published monthly in the U.S. from 1911 until 1917, when Federal prosecutors brought charges against its editors for conspiring to obstruct conscription. It was succeeded by The Liberator and then later The New Masses...

between 1911 and 1917.

Early Years

Young was born January 14, 1866, near Orangeville

Orangeville, Illinois

Orangeville is a village in Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 793 at the 2010 census, up from 751 at the 2000 census. The area's earliest white settlers arrived in 1833 and the village was platted in 1851 by John Bower, who is considered the village founder. In 1867...

, in Stephenson County

Stephenson County, Illinois

As of the census of 2000, there were 48,979 people, 19,785 households, and 13,473 families residing in the county. The population density was 87 people per square mile . There were 21,713 housing units at an average density of 38 per square mile...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. His family moved to Monroe, Wisconsin

Monroe, Wisconsin

Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population, was 10,843 at the 2000 census. The city is located partially within the Town of Monroe and partially in the Town of Clarno.-Geography:Monroe is located...

, when he was a year old. He enrolled in the Chicago Academy of Design in 1884, where he studied under J. H. Vanderpoel

John Vanderpoel

John Henry Vanderpoel was a Dutch-American artist and teacher, best known as an instructor of figure drawing. His book The Human Figure, a standard art school resource featuring numerous of his drawings based on his teaching at the Art Institute of Chicago, was published in 1907.Born in the...

. His first published cartoon appeared the same year in the trade paper, Nimble Nickel. Also in that same year, he began working for a succession of Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 newspapers including the Evening Mail, the Daily News

Chicago Daily News

The Chicago Daily News was an afternoon daily newspaper published between 1876 and 1978 in Chicago, Illinois.-History:The Daily News was founded by Melville E. Stone, Percy Meggy, and William Dougherty in 1875 and began publishing early the next year...

, and the Tribune

Chicago Tribune

The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...

.

In 1888, Young resumed his studies, first at the Art Students League of New York

Art Students League of New York

The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...

 (until 1889), then at the Académie Julian

Académie Julian

The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...

 in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 (1889-90). Following a long convalescence, he joined the Chicago Inter-Ocean (1892), to which he contributed political cartoons and drawings for its Sunday color supplement.

In 1895 he married Elizabeth North. In 1895 or 1896, he worked briefly for the Denver Times, then moved again to New York City after his separation with North, where he sold drawings to the humor magazines Puck

Puck (magazine)

Puck was America's first successful humor magazine of colorful cartoons, caricatures and political satire of the issues of the day. It was published from 1871 until 1918.-History:...

, Life

Life (magazine)

Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....

, and Judge, and drew cartoons for William Randolph Hearst

William Randolph Hearst

William Randolph Hearst was an American business magnate and leading newspaper publisher. Hearst entered the publishing business in 1887, after taking control of The San Francisco Examiner from his father...

's New York Evening Journal and Sunday New York American. From 1902 to 1906, Young studied rhetoric at Cooper Union

Cooper Union

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...

 in order to improve his skills as a cartoonist.

The Masses

Young started out as a generally apolitical Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

, but gradually became interested in left wing ideas, and by 1906 or so considered himself a socialist. Young would begin increasingly to associate with such political leftist as John Sloan and Piet Vlag, both of whom he would work with at the radical socialist monthly, The Masses

The Masses

The Masses was a graphically innovative magazine of socialist politics published monthly in the U.S. from 1911 until 1917, when Federal prosecutors brought charges against its editors for conspiring to obstruct conscription. It was succeeded by The Liberator and then later The New Masses...

. He became firmly ensconced in the radical environment of Greenwich Village after moving there in 1910. He became politically active, and by 1910, racial

Racism

Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...

 and sexual discrimination

Sexism

Sexism, also known as gender discrimination or sex discrimination, is the application of the belief or attitude that there are characteristics implicit to one's gender that indirectly affect one's abilities in unrelated areas...

 and the injustices of the capitalist

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...

 system became prevalent themes in his work. Young would explain these sentiments in his autobiography, Art Young: His Life and Times (1939),

I am antagonistic to the money-making fetish because it sidetracks our natural selves, leaving us no alternative but to accept the situation and take any kind of work for a weekly wage [...] We are caught and hurt by the system, and the more sensitive we are to life's highest values the harder it is to bear the abuse.

In an attempt to curb this abuse, Young ran for the New York State Assembly

New York State Assembly

The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...

 on the ticket of the Socialist Party of New York City (Part of the Socialist Party of America

Socialist Party of America

The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...

, SPUSA) in 1913 but was unsuccessful.

One facet of the establishment Young challenged in his cartoons and drawings was the Associated Press

Associated Press

The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...

. His attacks became overt and damning once he joined the staff of the Masses as a co-editor and contributor. He held this position from 1911 to 1918. Young was one of the few original editorial members that stayed with the magazine for its entire run until it folded in December 1917. In July 1913, the magazine published Young's cartoon 'Poisoned at the Source,' which depicted the AP's president, Frank B. Noyes

Frank Brett Noyes

Frank Brett Noyes was president of the Washington Evening Star, and a founder of the Associated Press. He was a son of Crosby Stuart Noyes.-References:...

, poisoning a well labeled 'The News' with lies, suppressed facts, slander, and prejudice. The cartoon was a response to the lack of national news coverage on the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike of 1912

Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike of 1912

The Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike of 1912 was a confrontation between striking coal miners and coal operators in Kanawha County, West Virginia, centered around the area enclosed by two streams, Paint Creek and Cabin Creek....

 in Kanawha County, West Virginia

Kanawha County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 200,073 people, 86,226 households, and 55,960 families residing in the county. The population density was 222 people per square mile . There were 93,788 housing units at an average density of 104 per square mile...

. The strike had lasted more than a year, and was characterized by deadly clashes between miners and militia hired by the coal companies. The coal companies were successful in having the Federal government declare martial law under a military tribunal, an egregious act according to the editors of the Masses.

The fact that little had been heard about these occurrences outside of West Virginia troubled those on the magazine's staff. Young's cartoon and Max Eastman's editorial, published in the same issue, claimed the AP had willfully suppressed the facts in order to aid the coal companies. The AP responded in kind with two suits of libel against Eastman and Young on November 1913 and January 1914. Both suits eventually were dropped after Young and Eastman's attorney subpoenaed the records of the AP's Pittsburgh office, possibly out of fear that the testimony and evidence would be damaging after becoming public through the legal proceedings.

The Liberator

In 1918 Young subsequently helped to establish a similar publication to the Masses, the above mentioned Liberator. He also served as an illustrator and Washington

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 correspondent for Metropolitan Magazine

Metropolitan Magazine (New York)

Metropolitan Magazine, known in its later years as Macfadden's Fiction Lover's Magazine, was a monthly periodical in the early 20th century with articles on politics and literature.-History:...

(1912-17) until the magazine released him due to his outspoken anti-war sentiments. In 1918, Young again ran unsuccessfully for public office on the Socialist ticket, this time for the New York State Senate

New York State Senate

The New York State Senate is one of two houses in the New York State Legislature and has members each elected to two-year terms. There are no limits on the number of terms one may serve...

.

Unhappy with the way that editors Max and Crystal Eastman and a few others were able to live off the struggling magazine, while he received a nominal fee or worked pro bono, Young left The Liberator in 1919 to start a magazine of his own, Good Morning. This publication was later absorbed by the Art Young Quarterly in 1922.

Other Publications

Young also contributed illustrations to The Nation

The Nation

The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...

, The Saturday Evening Post

The Saturday Evening Post

The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...

and Collier's Weekly

Collier's Weekly

Collier's Weekly was an American magazine founded by Peter Fenelon Collier and published from 1888 to 1957. With the passage of decades, the title was shortened to Collier's....

, New Leader, New Masses, The Coming Nation, Appeal to Reason

Appeal to Reason

The Appeal to Reason was a weekly political newspaper published in the American Midwest from 1895 until 1922. The paper was known for its radical politics, lending support over the years to the Farmers' Alliance and Populist movement before becoming a mainstay of the Socialist Party of America...

, Dawn, The Call, The New Yorker

The New Yorker

The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...

(after 1930), and Big Stick. Of the many books he wrote, two, On My Way (1928) and Art Young: His Life and Times (1939), are autobiographical. Of special note are his series of drawings depicting Hell, published in Cosmopolitan magazine and in several books, including Through Hell With Hiprah Hunt, available at Google Books. He issued a collection of his drawings, The Best of Art Young, in 1936.

First Trial

Young would continue to get himself into legal trouble with his drawings during his years at the Masses. In October 1917, Art Young, Max Eastman

Max Eastman

Max Forrester Eastman was an American writer on literature, philosophy and society, a poet, and a prominent political activist. For many years, Eastman was a supporter of socialism, a leading patron of the Harlem Renaissance and an activist for a number of liberal and radical causes...

, John Reed, Floyd Dell

Floyd Dell

Floyd Dell was an American author and critic.-Biography:Floyd Dell was born in Barry, Illinois on June 28, 1887....

, Merrill Rogers, and a one-time contributor were charged under the Espionage Act by the federal government on the charge of conspiracy to obstruct enlistment. The trial began in April the following year and Young's cartoon 'Having Their Fling,' was listed with the prosecutorial evidence. The cartoon depicts four men, an editor, a capitalist, a politician, and a minister dancing in orgiastic bliss as Satan leads a band of war implements. When asked to explain the cartoon, Young stated he was simply illustrating General Sherman's

William Tecumseh Sherman

William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...

 well-known saying that 'war is hell.' It seemed appropriate to Young, then, to have Satan at the conductor. The first trial ended in a hung jury. The official tally was 11-1 for conviction.

Second Trial

The second trial began in September 1918, and it was as full of humor and irreverence as the first, perhaps more humorous for the historian than for Young. Throughout the trial, Young had the tendency to nap, an act that brought him dangerously close to being charged with contempt of court. Afraid Young would get into more trouble than he already was, his attorneys insisted he be awakened and given a pencil and pad. Young took the pencil and pad and quickly completed a self-portrait. The drawing, 'Art Young on Trial for His Life,' appeared in the Liberator in June 1918. The cartoon depicted Young slumped in a chair, dozing the trial away.

Young's propensity for napping worked to the defendant's advantage during the closing arguments. Prosecutor Barnes, wrapped in an American flag and giving a moving speech, told a story of a dead soldier in France. This soldier, Barnes claimed, 'is but one of a thousand whose voices are not silent. He died for you and he died for me. He died for Max Eastman. He died for John Reed. He died for Merrill Rogers. He demands that these men be punished.' Roused from his slumber by the impassioned speech, Young exclaimed, 'What! Didn't he die for me too?' The beautiful oration successfully ruined, the second jury was unable to convict or acquit. Eight jurors voted for acquittal and four for conviction. It would be the last time Young appeared in court for the charges, as they were dropped after failing twice to garner any convictions.

Death

Art Young died on December 29, 1943 at the Hotel Irving in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 at age 77.

Legacy

His papers are housed in the Special Collections Library of the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 in Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, Michigan

Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...

.

Works

• Art Young: His Life and Times. Ed. John Nicholas Beffel. New York: Sheridan, 1939.
• On My Way: Being the Book of Art Young in Text and Picture. New York: Liveright, 1928.

Further reading

• Cox, Richard W. "Art Young: Cartoonist from the Middle Border." Wisconsin Magazine of History 61.1 (1977): 32-58.
• Fitzgerald, Richard. "Art Young."Art and Politics: Cartoonists of the Masses and Liberator. Westport, CN: Greenwood, 1961. 41-77.
• Hahn, Emily. Romantic Rebels. Boston: Houghton, 1967.
• O’Neill, William L., ed. Echoes of Revolt: The Masses 1911-1917. Chicago: Dee, 1966. Print.
• Sayer, John. "Art and Politics, Dissent and Repression: The Masses Magazine versus the Government, 1917-1918." American Journal of Legal History 32.1 (1988): 42-78.
• Zurier, Rebecca. Art for The Masses. Philadelphia: Temple UP, 1988.

External links

• Comrades in Art: Art Young
• Marxists Internet Archives: 'Art Young - The Masses 1912-1918, Good Morning'
• Jorian.com: Cartoons of Art Young