'Mauvais salaire': Twee werklieden 1868 - 1919

Jan Toorop made this drawing, 'Mauvais salaire: Twee werklieden', with chalk on paper. Two workers stand together, and one holds out a meager handful of coins. The title tells us it is a 'bad wage', but the image makes us ask, what social conditions made workers so vulnerable at this time? Toorop was Dutch, and although this work is undated, his art from the 1880s through the early 1900s often engaged with social inequality and the plight of the poor. We can see the influence of cultural movements such as Socialism and Anarchism in the way this artwork emphasizes the dignity and worth of the common labourer. At this time, the Netherlands was rapidly industrializing and there was great concern over working conditions and wages. Looking at periodicals, political pamphlets, and statistical data from the time can help us to understand the social conditions that shaped this powerful image.