Life, 1898-09-15 · page 1 of 20
Life — September 15, 1898 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Love and Art" - Life Magazine, September 15, 1898 This cartoon satirizes romantic obstacles in artistic circles. The scene shows a poorly-dressed artist in his studio confronting a well-dressed woman (likely of higher social class, suggested by her crown-like hat). The caption reveals the central joke: her father forbids their marriage until the artist accumulates fifty thousand dollars and has "a cent" to his name—conditions requiring six months to meet. The satire mocks the class barriers preventing love matches between impoverished artists and wealthy women, while also gently ridiculing both the father's mercenary standards and the artist's presumption of romantic prospects despite his obvious poverty. The cartoon's title and scenario suggest broader themes about the incompatibility of Bohemian artistic life with respectable Victorian society expectations.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XXXIl. NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 15, 1898. NUMBER 823, Entered at the New York Post OMice as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1898, by Lire PuBLISUING COMPANY. <-Sc =e PPP LOVE AND ART. “YOUR PATER SAYS WE CAN'T MARRY UNTIL I HAVE PIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS, AND 1 WAVEN'T A CENT.” “NEVER MIND, DEAR, 1M WILLING TO WAIT, IP IT TAKES SIX MONTHS”