Priya Kapoor
James Montgomery Flagg was an American artist, comics artist, and illustrator. He worked across various media, including fine art painting, cartooning, and illustration. Flagg is best remembered for his political posters, particularly his iconic 1917 poster of Uncle Sam, titled I Want YOU for U.S. Army, created for United States Army recruitment during World War I. Over four million copies of the poster were printed, and it was revived during World War II. So, when was Say When painted by James Montgomery Flagg?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Artist | James Montgomery Flagg |
| Born | June 18, 1877, in Pelham, New York |
| Died | May 27, 1960, in New York City |
| Artworks | I Want You for the U.S. Army (1917), Portraits of Mark Twain and Ethel Barrymore, and Jack Dempsey |
| Style | Fine art painting, cartooning, illustrations, graphic design, pen-and-ink drawings |
| Notable Facts | Best known for his political posters, particularly his 1917 poster of Uncle Sam for World War I recruitment. He also created illustrations for magazines such as St. Nicholas, Life, Judge, and Vanity Fair. |
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What You'll Learn
James Montgomery Flagg's artistic career
James Montgomery Flagg (June 18, 1877 – May 27, 1960) was an American artist, comics artist, illustrator, and portrait painter. He worked across various media, including fine art painting, cartooning, and graphic design, but is best remembered for his political posters. Flagg was born in Pelham Manor, New York, and showed a talent and enthusiasm for drawing from a young age. By age 12, he had sold his first illustration to St. Nicholas magazine for $10, and by 14, he was a contributing artist for Life magazine. He then joined the staff of Judge magazine and attended the Art Students League of New York from 1894 to 1898. He also studied fine art in London and Paris from 1898 to 1900 before returning to the United States.
Upon his return, Flagg established himself as a prolific illustrator, creating countless illustrations for books, magazine covers, political and humorous cartoons, advertising, and spot drawings. He worked for popular magazines such as Judge, Life, Harper's Weekly, College Humor, and Cosmopolitan, and his illustrations were also collected into books. Flagg became known for his illustrations of buxom girls and his portraits, which revealed the influence of John Singer Sargent. He painted portraits of notable figures such as Mark Twain and Ethel Barrymore, and his portrait of Jack Dempsey hangs in the National Portrait Gallery.
However, Flagg is most renowned for his political posters, particularly his World War I recruiting poster featuring Uncle Sam with the caption "I Want You for the U.S. Army." This poster, created in 1917, was based on an earlier image Flagg designed for a 1916 magazine cover. Over four million copies of the poster were printed during World War I, and it was revived during World War II. Flagg used his own face for Uncle Sam, adding age and a white goatee, and posed for many of his WWII posters.
Flagg supported Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal and painted presidential election posters for him. He also worked for popular U.S. journals like The Saturday Evening Post and Collier's and published his autobiography, Roses and Buckshot, in 1946. Unfortunately, towards the end of his life, deteriorating eyesight forced him to give up his art, and he passed away in New York City in 1960.
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'I Want You for the U.S. Army' poster
James Montgomery Flagg created the "I Want You for the U.S. Army" poster in 1917. It was created to encourage recruitment in the United States Army during World War I. The poster features Uncle Sam pointing at the viewer, inspired by a 1914 British recruitment poster depicting Lord Kitchener in a similar pose. Over four million copies of the poster were printed during World War I, and it was revived during World War II.
Flagg first created the image for the July 6, 1916, cover of Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper. The government contacted him after the US entered World War I, requesting that he adapt the image into a war poster. Flagg used his own face as the model for Uncle Sam, adding age and a white goatee. He posed for many of his World War II posters, saving the cost of hiring models.
The "I Want You for the U.S. Army" poster has become one of the most famous and enduring images from World War I. It has been credited for its effectiveness as a propaganda tool, and its composition has been compared to other recruitment posters of the time, such as Spear's "Enlist" poster. The poster has been reproduced and exhibited in recent years, including at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
The poster has also been analysed for its impact on popular culture and American society. Uncle Sam, as a character, has been used in various incarnations to encourage Americans to take actions supporting the war effort, such as buying liberty bonds, conserving food, and working in war-related industries. The "I Want You for the U.S. Army" poster specifically tapped into the idea of citizens' patriotic obligation to serve their nation in times of war.
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Other notable works
James Montgomery Flagg is best remembered for his political posters, particularly his 1917 poster of Uncle Sam created for United States Army recruitment during World War I. However, he also produced an immense and varied amount of artwork during his long and fruitful career. Flagg worked across media ranging from fine art painting to cartooning, and his works were featured in numerous magazines, including Collier's, Cosmopolitan, Hearst's International, Judge Magazine, Liberty, McClures Magazine, Photoplay, Redbook, Saturday Evening Post, The American Weekly, Women's Home Companion, and many others.
Flagg was a favourite illustrator of publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst, and he gained numerous commissions through this relationship, including humorous short story illustrations and rapid portrait studies of Hearst's friends. Most of his sitters were generally upper-class society scions and celebrities, including actor John Barrymore and his sister Ethel, cartoonist Ham Fisher, humourist Rube Goldberg, and illustrator Charles Dana Gibson.
Flagg also painted portraits that reveal the influence of John Singer Sargent. His portrait of Jack Dempsey now hangs in the Great Hall of the National Portrait Gallery. Other notable portrait sitters included Mark Twain and Ethel Barrymore.
Flagg was also a prolific cover artist, particularly for Judge magazine. He created illustrations for books, magazine covers, political and humorous cartoons, advertising, and spot drawings. He also illustrated P.G. Wodehouse's stories, creating the visual characterisation for the character, Jeeves. Flagg's first book illustration was Yankee Girls Abroad (1900).
In addition to his illustration work, Flagg published an autobiography, Roses and Buckshot, in 1946. He also appeared in a Pabst Blue Ribbon magazine ad in 1948, which featured him working at an easel in his New York studio with a young lady at his side and a tray of Pabst beer.
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Personal life
James Montgomery Flagg was born in Pelham Manor, New York, on June 18, 1877. He had a difficult relationship with his parents, as evidenced by his writings: "Loyalty to family as such doesn't seem to me pertinent. Family isn't sacrosanct to me. To hell with the snobbery of inheritance." Flagg's artistic talent was evident from a young age. At just 12 years old, he sold his first illustration to St. Nicholas magazine for $10, and by the age of 14, he was a contributing artist for Life magazine. He then joined the staff of Judge magazine, the most popular magazine in the field, at 15 years old.
From 1894 to 1898, Flagg attended the Art Students League of New York, where he made lifelong friends, including John Wolcott Adams and Walter Appleton Clark. He also studied fine art in London and Paris from 1898 to 1900 before returning to the United States. During his early career, Flagg worked prolifically across various media, including illustrations for books, magazine covers, political and humorous cartoons, advertising, and spot drawings. He worked for two of the most popular U.S. journals, The Saturday Evening Post and Collier's, and was a prolific cover artist for Judge magazine.
Flagg is best remembered for his political posters, particularly his iconic 1917 "I Want YOU for U.S. Army" poster featuring Uncle Sam, which he created to encourage recruitment for World War I. Over four million copies of the poster were printed, and it was revived during World War II. Flagg used his own face for Uncle Sam, adding age and a white goatee, and posed for many of his WWII posters to save on model costs. He also created presidential election posters for Franklin D. Roosevelt, a public figure he greatly admired and respected.
Flagg's personal life included a marriage to one of his models, Dorothy Virginia Wadman, in 1924. Their daughter, Faith, was born in 1925, but Flagg considered the marriage a mistake. Unfortunately, Dorothy suffered a severe psychiatric breakdown a few years after their daughter's birth and was institutionalized. Flagg's later life was marked by deteriorating eyesight, which forced him to give up his art. He died in New York City on May 27, 1960, three weeks before his 83rd birthday, and was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx, New York City.
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Death and legacy
James Montgomery Flagg died on May 27, 1960, in New York City, three weeks before his 83rd birthday. He had no children with his wife, Dorothy Virginia Wadman, and his daughter, Faith, was born in 1925. Flagg claimed that his marriage was the ""worst mistake of my life".
Flagg is best remembered for his political posters, particularly his 1917 poster of Uncle Sam created for United States Army recruitment during World War I. Over four million copies of the poster were printed during World War I, and it was revived for World War II. Flagg used his own face for that of Uncle Sam, adding age and a white goatee. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt praised his resourcefulness for using his own face as the model.
Flagg was a prolific illustrator and painter, working for magazines such as Judge, Life, Collier's, and The Saturday Evening Post. He also painted portraits, including those of Mark Twain and Ethel Barrymore. His portrait of Jack Dempsey now hangs in the Great Hall of the National Portrait Gallery.
In 1946, Flagg published his autobiography, Roses and Buckshot. He was a strong supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal and painted presidential election posters for him. Flagg's home, the James Montgomery Flagg House, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
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