2/3/11- J. Howard Miller

I've been on a WWII kick this week due to my history class. This is why I chose J. Howard Miller as one of my artists this week. His graphic art during WWII has inspired artists for years, and will for years to come. He created many posters that were pro-war effort such as this one....

                                                     And this one....

But this one is probably the most recognizable across all of America.

Yes! J. Howard Miller was the fabulous creator of Rosie The Riveter! The piece is actually called "We can Do It!" but is commonly misidentified as "Rosie the Riveter" Without his iconic piece, many women may never have joined the war effort and taken up the jobs that their men had left behind. In my personal opinon, Mr. Miller is one of the most influential artists of the 40's. 

Mr. Miller was born in 1918 in Wellington, KS, but grew up in Clovis, NM. He graduated high school in 1936 and attended the University of Southern California, Los Angeles City College, and Eastern New Mexico State College afterward. On December 8, 1941 he volunteered in the Army Air Force where they trained him in Photography. He used that skill for the rest of his life.

He drew inspiration from the War effort in 1941. His main focus was on the women of the war, since they were in fact helping the war effort as much as the boys across the pond.