THE ART OF WAR: POSTERS IN WORLD CONFLICT
World War I and World War II poster exhibit opens
Veterans Day weekend at Lincoln Presidential Library
November 9, 2007 – May 26, 2008

"Loose lips sink ships." This famous phrase, used for the first time on a United States propaganda poster, joins Uncle Sam's "I want you!" and other gems like "Can the Kaiser!" as the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum presents "The Art of War: Posters in World Conflict," a temporary exhibit opening Veterans Day Weekend, Friday, November 9. The exhibit of 195 posters, located in the Presidential Library, is free and open to the public for viewing seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and will continue through Memorial Day, May 26, 2008.

In addition to the 195 posters that will make up the exhibit, more posters will be added temporarily for the Pearl Harbor attack anniversary (December 7), Christmas, African American History Month (February) and Women's History Month (March). Visitors may also use listening stations in the Library to hear audio recordings of voices from both wars.

As the nation entered The Great War in April 1917, President Woodrow Wilson found himself faced with the need to reverse a stance of neutrality for the United States. Executive Order 2594 established the Committee on Public Information. Chaired by George Creel, this Committee's purpose was to persuade Americans to participate in and support the war effort. For the next eighteen months, the Committee's Division of Pictorial Publicity produced more than 1,400 poster images that were seen by millions throughout the country. Charles Dana Gibson assembled a group of artists to help design images that would reach everyone — people who might not read newspapers or magazines, but whose support was vital to victory. Before the Committee was abolished by Executive Order 3154 on August 21, 1919, its posters had come to include the work of famous illustrators who could command thousands for their art in peace-time, but whose war efforts were provided voluntarily. Most memorable is James Montgomery Flagg's Uncle Sam (a self-portrait), but the images touch every aspect of American life that was needed to win the war.

By 1940, the impact of poster art on the American public might seem to have lessened. Radio, movies, and billboards were widely recognized information vehicles for the government's promotion of the war effort, but posters could go where these media could not. Private industries joined with the government to create images that appeared in schools, factories, offices, and store windows. The attack on Pearl Harbor forced America's hand and the country had to rally all its resources. Rosie the Riveter, the Red Cross, thrifty housewives, and farmers were needed to support the troops. War bonds that supported the effort had to be sold, and people needed to be cautioned not to let careless talk inform enemies about troop movements. Recruitment for all branches of the armed forces was vital and scrap drives helped reduce the need for the raw materials of war. Posters tacked up throughout the country conveyed all this and more.

The original World War I and World War II posters, mainly from the United States but including those from Great Britain, France, Germany, the Soviet Union and other countries, are part of the exhibit.

The Presidential Library and Museum is developing a series of programs that will accompany the exhibition.