Life — January 28, 1909 — page 5: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page features an Art Nouveau-style illustration titled "Caryatides for a Temple to Millinery"—a satirical architectural drawing showing two female figures as supporting columns, their heads topped with enormous, elaborately decorated hats. The satire mocks women's fashion obsession, specifically the era's extravagant millinery (hat-making). By depicting women as architectural supports literally weighed down by hats, the cartoon suggests women have become mere objects or props to display fashion excess. The "temple to millinery" implies hat-wearing has become almost religious devotion. The accompanying text articles address poets' reputations and Roosevelt comparisons, unrelated to the visual satire. This appears to be an early 20th-century critique of conspicuous consumption and feminine fashion culture.