Under the Blue, White and Red

In a jumbled pile of thrift shop scarves J. spotted this bit of history—

Rayon scarf, app. 69 cm by 71 cm (27 by 28 ")

During World War II, clothing manufacturers used rayon to replace unavailable silk. Although the European war didn't end until May 8, 1945 (VE Day), this scarf might have been made any time after the August 25, 1944 liberation of Paris it commemorates.

Photo: Robert Capa

This month happens to mark the 70th anniversary. The distance is evident in France's political swings to the right, and in the latter's usual efforts at re-writing history.

But this scarf represents an historic moment in Paris, 1944.

From Sacré-Coeur at the city's highest point—

The steps of Montmartre sweep down to a city full of flags, banners, and jubilant cartoon characters.

The whole scene surrounded by victory slogans—

"Vive Les Sammies"—

This was a new one on me, and I didn't get it. But (as usual) J. did: "Sammies" for "Uncle Sam." This appears to date from World War I, when it was used by both French and British soldiers.

There doesn't seem much to be found (even in French) on designer Denise Louvet.

But the textile house was well-known. Its trademark, the Place Vendôme Column, denoted the shop's Paris location.

Some period ads are here. This is the shop in 1937—

The patriotic color schemes of these ads are from 1945—

By an interesting coincidence, J. found this scarf just after I had read Wearing Propaganda: Textiles on the Home Front in Japan, Britain, and the United States. The book was published in conjunction with this exhibit, curated by author Jacqueline Atkins.

It was fascinating to see how the French scarf continues the British and American war-time theme of morale-boosting messages printed on textiles. The chapter in Atkins' book devoted to English scarves, "London Squares," is written by graphic design collector and historian Paul Rennie. Rennie has a pdf of the material posted here. Illustrations are unfortunately small and low resolution, but Rennie's text offers some interesting social history of wartime Britain as background to propaganda scarf manufacture.

With their increased wartime presence in factories, women were admonished to cover their hair for safety—

Poster: F. Kenwood Giles, 1941
Imperial War Museum

Rennie writes that—

The scarf became, in the context of war work, an important element in safety awareness and part of the proper uniform of the female industrial workforce. These fashion notes were further emphasised through a discourse of make-do-and-mend and also in the pages of the fashion press. The pages of "Vogue" championed the active participation of women in the war effort and ran features on work wear and propaganda textiles.

(Some material on British Vogue's work at the behest of the government is here.)

Two English design houses of note, Jacqmar and Ascher, produced "up-market" scarves. Rennie offers some fascinating social background—

The designs produced by Jacqmar are unashamedly aimed at an economy of exchange between wartime sweethearts in London. The existence of designs aimed at American personnel, the Free French and Poles in London serve as a reminder that, whatever the official line, fraternisation between these different groups was popular. The existence of these textiles is evidence of a social transformation in London during WW2. The pursuit of an export market as a national priority during and after the war placed a premium of these products at home. The company office in Mayfair identified the products and brand as high class, as did the relatively expensive price point of the products.

(A friendship scarf example from the Imperial War Museum, along with other collection links, is here.)

Jacqmar's graphic style was one of

... dynamic and expressive line drawing. The inexact registration of colour blocks over the line give a pleasing looseness to the design and hint at "cubist" influences.

This short piece includes a nice slide show of Jacqmar samples from another collector. Even when scarf designs featured such text as war-time slogans, Jacqmar's style was particularly jaunty. This one was manufactured after the US had joined the war—

"Jacqmar Presents" featured catch phrases of BBC radio programs—

This collector suggests that, at war office request, Jacqmar did subtle pro-French propaganda with this—

It's hard to beat those colorful, clever peintures. Still, J's scarf was an amazing find, with an historic moment expressed in period graphic style.

The perfect souvenir for a Sammie in post-war France to bring home.

Government Work

Here we are: on the eve of an election that follows over thirty years and and unknown millions invested in turning anti-government propaganda into mainstream narrative.

November 6 is mere days after a disaster that kind of illustrates the need for effective government.

As it happens, Sister J, the brother-in-law, and I drove west from the East Coast in time to beat the storm, just two days after the funeral of our 93-year old father. We were lucky to have plenty of warning, through FEMA alerts and local governors' advance state of emergency declarations.

We brought back family photos and whatever priority items we could get in the short time available. J is now the keeper of a World War II veteran's army memorabilia, mostly printed. There's a lot that needs to be scanned at some future time; it's fascinating material, and a reminder of how valued "government work" once was.

For now, here are a couple of items.

The letterhead is from a WWII posting for ordinance training; graphic detail is in the style of an engraving—

These are from a couple of decades later [enlarged from a 2 x 5" ticket folder]—

1945 Magazine Catalog

A souvenir of the era when department stores sold everything, including books and magazines.

This catalog for 1945 subscriptions would have been published in 1944. The emphasis is on red-white-and-blue, and the continued state of war.

Uncle Sam and "Mrs. Uncle Sam" stand beneath a rendering of the cast-iron entrance to Louis Sullivan's Carson Pirie Scott building.

The story of Mrs. Uncle Sam is on the inside cover.

... She was only a baby when her folks build their first rude log cabin at Jamestown. She was in pigtails when Uncle Sam first began to notice her—that cruel winter at Plymouth. He was ready to pop the question the night Cousin Paul Revere rode so furiously down the road to Lexington...

It continues in this vein, from the couple marrying after Yorktown; "a framed copy of the Bill of Rights...the first picture hung on their walls."

There's the crossing the plains and heading off Indians; then on to the 1860s, when Mrs. Sam went "on the battlefield to nurse [Uncle Sam], and his wounded brothers of the South." Next,

She bought Liberty Bonds with their savings during the first World War. She managed wonderfully all through the depression.
Today, she stands in the front line with Uncle Sam—to defend what they built togehter. She knows he needs her now, as never, never before.
...
And Mrs. Uncle Sam faces this resolutely, serenely and free!

We salute you homemakers—mothers and women of America—for you are Mrs. Uncle Sam.

One magazine on offer:


The war would actually end in the summer of 1945, and Time was already pitching post-war life


War or peace, Time was willing as ever to take "news-words," and "boil them down and point them up and connect them together for you..."

Then, as now, considerately sparing readers the work of thinking for themselves.