Description
This rare small-format Jonas Lie On the Job for Victory poster is one of America’s most compelling World War I shipping-industry commissions. The Jonas Lie On the Job for Victory poster captures a moment of unprecedented industrial mobilization, when American shipyards worked around the clock to build emergency vessels for the war effort.
Jonas Lie (1880–1940) was a celebrated American painter renowned for his maritime paintings and distinctive, colorful impressionistic style. Originally trained as a seaman, Lie brought authentic nautical knowledge to his artistic practice, making him the ideal choice to document American shipbuilding during the emergency fleet construction of 1917–1918.
Composition & Visual Impact:
The poster depicts the United States Shipping Board’s Emergency Fleet Corporation shipyard in full operation. Steel construction cranes dominate the composition—a geometric forest of structural beams rendered in warm oranges and ochres against a pale blue sky. In the foreground, workers move with purposeful energy, their figures dwarfed by the industrial machinery. The color palette—predominantly warm oranges and burnt umbers for the steel structure, contrasted with cool blues for the sky and distance—creates visual drama while conveying industrial power and patriotic urgency.
Historical Significance:
Issued in August 1918 as a supplement to The North American newspaper in Philadelphia, this poster served the U.S. Shipping Board’s campaign to inspire public confidence in America’s capacity to build ships faster than German U-boats could sink them. The “On the Job for Victory” message reinforced the idea that American workers—and American industry—were essential to winning the war.
This poster is exceptionally rare in the small format (19.25″ × 14.24″). The more commonly encountered version measures 30″ × 40″, making this smaller iteration a significant find for serious collectors. First acquisition in our gallery in over 25 years.
Professionally conservation-backed with archival linen mounting and ready to frame.
Trust Differentiators:
✓ Certified authentic original — Guaranteed with Certificate of Authenticity
✓ Rare small-format version — Exceptionally scarce; most known impressions are 30″ × 40″ size
✓ Documented provenance — W.F. Powers Company lithography, August 25, 1918; supplement to The North American, Philadelphia
✓ Archival linen-backed conservation mounting — Museum standards applied
✓ IVPDA certified dealer — 28 years in business; authenticated vintage poster specialists
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