Life — October 28, 1920 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "A Plea for Realism" This satirical cartoon critiques artistic practice, specifically the tension between idealized portrait painting and realistic depiction. The scene shows an artist (left, holding palette) conversing with a woman seated for her portrait. The caption reads: "Now, my dear Mr. Argent, you mustn't be influenced by my presence, and make my portrait too ethereal." The joke targets the common artistic convention of flattering female subjects by rendering them as ethereal, idealized beauties rather than accurate likenesses. The woman's request for "realism" is ironic—she's actually asking the artist to make her look prettier and less realistic. The satire mocks both the artificial standards of portraiture and the vanity of subjects who demand flattery under the guise of artistic authenticity.