[Oklahoma]. [Oil]

[Original Artwork for a Satirical Cartoon on the Oil Business in Oklahoma]

[Edmond, Ok. 1937]. Ink wash drawing on heavy stock, 12 x 18 inches. A few tears and chips at edges, lightly dampstained, some light soiling. Good. Item #6117

A satirical and slightly racist drawing featuring the Oklahoma oil fields, a Native American, and a cat. The centerpiece is a long, shabby building labeled "Edmond Tool House" in haphazard letters. This rickety-looking building has cracked windows, a peeling tin roof, and a slightly sketchy porch, upon which reclines a man who appears to be sniffing the hind end of a cat. The label below reads "Oil-field chloroform", and a waft of smoke rises from the back end of the cat, which hides the lower half of the reclining man's face. From around the side of the building, a fedora-clad man exclaims "!?!x! This would happen on my prize property." The face is a very accurate portrait pasted on to the artwork. On the other side of the building, a Native American sits cross-legged on the ground holding a peace pipe, opining "Maybe big white brother finly [sic] buy feast for Indians." Oil derricks can be seen in the background. The image is inscribed and signed in the lower right corner, "Recalling a very pleasant trip and a damned embarrassing experience. J.G. Dyer 7/21/37." The oil fields of Oklahoma were some of the busiest and most productive from 1900 to 1935, though the West Edmond Oil Field wasn't discovered until the 1940s. An unusual piece of art which would seem to contain some sort of inside joke.

Price: $500.00