Workers c. 1949

Leon Golub created this print entitled 'Workers' using lithography. Golub came of age during the depression and World War II. These formative experiences contributed to his work which typically focuses on themes of power, oppression, and social injustice. His gestural style creates meaning in this image through stark visual codes of dark and light. The crude, distressed rendering of the figures hints at the dehumanizing effects of labor, as does the anonymity of the figures depicted. Golub was deeply concerned with the ethics of representation. His interest in the politics of imagery prompted him to produce work in response to the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement, reflecting a broader cultural reckoning with questions of power and equality. To understand Golub's work fully, scholars consider his socio-political context, looking to historical events, political movements, and economic structures, using sources such as period publications and institutional records. This reminds us that art's meaning is often contingent on its social and institutional context.