Working Class Collection (page 80)

FACTORY: CHEVROLET, 1960s. A Chevrolet assembley line in the early 1960s

WORLD WAR I: WOMEN WORKERS. Women welding bomb casings in an American munitions factory, c1917

NEW YORK: BREAD LINE, 1915. Bread line on 41st Street, New York City, 30 January 1915

SHAHN: THREE MEN. Three working class men near a railroad station. Painting by Ben Shahn (1898-1969)

NEW YORK: TENEMENTS, 1912. A row of tenements on Elizabeth Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York. Photograph, by Lewis Wickes Hine, March 1912

LONDON: RIVERSIDE, c1860. Riverside view in Lambeth, London, England, along the Thames. Photographed c1860

AUSTRIA: VIENNA, 1916. A woman street cleaner on Fleischmarkt, Vienna, in 1916, during World War I

BOSTON: SLUMS, 1909. Young boy eating scraps out of trash bins in a Boston slum. Photographed in October 1909 by Lewis Hine

SALVATION ARMY, 1908. Crowd waiting at basket distribution window for Christmas dinner from the Salvation Army, New York City

RED CROSS, c1920. Members of the American Red Cross Motor Corps learning to fix an automobile engine, c1920

CONEY ISLAND: LUNA PARK. Luna Park amusement park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, c1910-1915

CONEY ISLAND: SLIDE. Razzle Dazzle ride at Dreamland amusement park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, early 20th century

BENTON: FIELD WORKERS, 1945. Field workers picking cotton. Oil on canvas by Thomas Hart Benton, 1945

TELEGRAPH MESSENGERS, 1911. A young group of Western Union Messengers in Norfolk, Virginia. Photograph by Lewis Hine, June 1911

AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURING. An American auto assembly line, c1910

POSTAL MESSENGERS, 1911. A young group of Postal Messengers in Norfolk, Virginia. Photograph by Lewis Hine, June 1911

CONEY ISLAND: BEACH. People on the beach at Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Early 20th century photograph

TELEGRAPH MESSENGER, 1913. A young telegraph messenger on a street in New Orleans, Louisiana. Photograph by Lewis Hine, November 1913

RENOIR: GRAPE PICKERS. Grape Pickers at Lunch. Oil on canvas by Pierre Auguste Renoir, c1880s

CONEY ISLAND: SLEEPING. A couple sleeping on the sand under the boardwalk. Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. Photograph, early 20th century

SHARECROPPER FAMILY, 1900. Butchered hogs hanging near the house of a black farm family in Virginia, c1900

HARPERs WEEKLY, 1913. A pair of stylish motorists are rescued by a sharecropper in the rural South. American magazine cover by John Coughlin, 3 May 1913

SHARECROPPERs SON, 1937. The son of a sharecropper at work in a cotton field near Chesnee, South Carolina. Photograph by Dorothea Lange, June 1937

NEW YORK : CHINATOWN, 1909. Doyers Street in New Yorks Chinatown in lower Manhattan. Stereograph, 1909

A young mum at a council house on the sink estate of Raffles, Carlisle, Cumbria, UK
Ashley Cooper / SpecialistStock

a cheap bottle of wine abandoned by a street drinker amongst tenement flats on Barrow Island
Ashley Cooper / SpecialistStock

Illegal fly tipping in Salford Manchester UK
Ashley Cooper / SpecialistStock

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The working class, an integral part of society's backbone, has long been depicted in various forms of art and propaganda. In the early 20th century, a capitalist pyramid stood tall, symbolizing the social hierarchy that oppressed the laborers. American Socialist posters from 1911 aimed to challenge this system and advocate for equality. As time progressed, the working class found representation in different ideologies. The Young Communist League emerged as a shock battalion during the Soviet Union's Five-Year Plan in 1931. Vladimir Lyushin's poster captured their determination and commitment towards building a new future. In late 1930s America, Ben Shahn painted an oil on canvas masterpiece titled "Organize?" It showcased over one million workers standing united behind the cause of organizing for better rights and conditions. Across borders, even organizations like Salvation Army used propaganda to address social issues such as poverty. A London-based chromolitho poster from around 1910 highlighted their efforts to uplift those affected by economic hardships. Historical landmarks also bear witness to the struggles faced by the working class. The Old George pub at Bethnal Green in London served as a gathering place where locals shared stories of hardship and resilience during challenging times. One such instance was witnessed when unemployed coal miners took to the streets of Jarrow, England in 1936 demanding justice amidst widespread unemployment caused by industrial decline. Artistic expressions have immortalized iconic figures representing laborers' strength and unity. Vera Mukhina's sculpture "Worker and Kolkhoz Woman" became an emblematic image celebrating collective effort during Moscow's industrialization era. Moving across continents to Harlem in New York City during World War II, Gordon Parks captured a powerful photograph depicting a young newsboy hustling through adversity while contributing his share towards survival amidst difficult circumstances. Industrial progress brought forth innovations like wringers - wet clothes dryers - which eased some burdens carried by homemakers within working-class households. During the war, women played a crucial role in supporting the troops.