Back Street c. 1935 - 1943

William Norman made this lithograph titled "Back Street" in the 20th century. Immediately, one's eye is drawn to the skeletal hands reaching skyward, set against a backdrop of factories. The raised hands, a gesture found across millennia, speak of supplication or perhaps desperation. Consider how this motif echoes in Renaissance paintings of saints in devout prayer, or even the ancient Egyptian depictions of souls ascending to the heavens. Yet, here, it’s juxtaposed with the stark modernity of industrial architecture. The factory looms like a medieval castle, but instead of promising protection, it seems to cast a shadow over these pleading figures. This image stirs a primal fear—a collective memory of humanity dwarfed by its own creations. It's a powerful statement about the human condition, one that reverberates through time, connecting our anxieties to the anxieties of our forebears.