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Exhibition Drawn to Purpose

Nell Brinkley (1886–1944). [Golden Eyes with Uncle Sam dog]. Published as cover for Seattle Times Magazine, April 18, 1918. Watercolor, ink, gouache, and opaque white over graphite. Gift/purchase, 2001. Art Wood Collection of Caricature and Cartoon, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (006.01.00)
LC–DIG–ppmsca–01603
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WWI Heroine

As Golden Eyes bids farewell, presumably to her boyfriend, she also promotes Liberty Bonds to support the war effort. Bright-eyed but sad, she embodies patriotism on the home front. Among Nell Brinkley's beautiful young women in her serial comics, Golden Eyes stands out as enduring and heroic. Brinkley employs her fine-lined drawing technique, influenced by Art Nouveau, to render Golden Eyes' stylish attire. Decades later, cartoonist Dale Messick cited Brinkley's work as an inspiration.