Life — May 31, 1923 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Explanation for Modern Readers The top cartoon satirizes the pretentious embrace of "Art" in 1890s society. Various figures—appearing to be fashionable New Yorkers—discuss art in pompous, contradictory ways while conducting ordinary activities. One character quotes George Washington; another admits he "didn't even know what was sick." The satire targets how people adopted "art" as cultural status without genuine understanding, treating it as fashionable consumption rather than meaningful appreciation. The accompanying article supports this, noting Grand Central Station's portrait gallery for traveling salesmen—mocking how art became commercialized décor. The lower cartoon "There Ought to Be a Law Against This" humorously presents Prohibition-era drinking—people boasting they'll drink "whenever you get a chance," defying the new law through casual lawbreaking.