The Wasp — 1891 — page 587: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This six-panel satirical comic depicts the stereotypical struggling artist's journey. The narrative follows an unnamed male artist from initial creative inspiration through progressively mounting desperation: 1. **Getting an idea** — head in hands, contemplating 2. **Adding finishing touches** — working with apparent confidence 3. **Celebrating completion** — triumphantly declaring "Ah, I have it!" 4. **Seeking approval** — presenting work to an editor 5. **Anxious waiting** — pacing nervously 6. **Rejection** — collapsed in defeat outside the editor's office, marked "NOTHING ENTERED" The subtitle "(An idea that alas, is only too true.)" acknowledges this reflects real conditions faced by artists of the era. The satire mocks both the gap between artistic ambition and market acceptance, and the precarious economic position of creative professionals in 19th-century America.