I'll Be What I Choose: Vanity of Ambition 1949

Benton Spruance created this lithograph, "I'll Be What I Choose: Vanity of Ambition," during a period marked by significant shifts in American identity and social values. Spruance, deeply affected by the Great Depression and World War II, used his art to explore themes of social justice and human dignity. In this print, a woman gazes reflectively at her reflection in a mirror; around her are a series of masks. Her ambiguous gaze and the multitude of masks ask us to consider identity as a performance of the self in society. Are those masks an opportunity or a constraint? By presenting identity as a choice laden with social expectations, Spruance invites us to question the roles we play and the authenticity of our ambitions. He challenges us to confront the emotional weight of these choices, reflecting on how personal desires intersect with broader societal pressures.