The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-08-21
CAMPAIGN BANNERS.
Thousands Employed in Making
Them-Artists Who Do the Work.

Thousands Employed in Making
Them--Artists Who Do the Work.
From the New York Tribune.
Il can crack out eight portraits of
any of the candidates in one day." re-
marked the artist in the variegated
overalls, as he added a touch Of color
to Mr.. Roosevelt's mustache. Amy old
kind of copy will do. A picture clipped
from a magazine often serves if a pho
tograph is not easily procurable One
does not have to bother with the lines
or the face in making a picture for a
campaign banner. So long as it looks
the part from the sidewalk the picture
passes muster
The artist went on to explain that
the present presidential and vice pres
idential candidates are especially easy
to paint. All have faces with strongly
marked characteristics that make it
almost impossible for a campaign ban
ner artist to wander from a resem-
blance. President Roosevelt, with eye
glasses, round face and low collar,
hair parted slightly at the side and set,
determined look, is not a difficult prob
lem. Fairbanks has a high forehead
and beard that is peculiar; put a
Fairbanks beard on almost any face,
say the artists of the street banners,
and the face will look like Fairbanks.
Parker has big mustache and a judi
cial face, with no extraordinary lines
to bother the painter who counts on
turning out eight portraits of the DEM
ocratic candidate day; and Davis,
with his pointed white beard, is bless
ing to the artist of the campaign va
riety.
The man who paints the portraits for
the street banners is at the top notch
of his profession. He will condescend,
when ordered to, to devote his talents
to the portrayal of a wide winged eagle
clawing a star spangled shield, or he
will fill in his time lettering II Pluri-
bus Unum" on half finished banners,
but he regards such work as the prop
err sphere of less talented artists. The
portrait man considers that his time
should be spent on the pictures of the
candidates. The rest he calls filling
in"
1t requires the energies of twelve
men to make one of the big campaign
banners that are now being flung to
the breeze. Two men prepare the strips
on which the lettering is done. Two
more attend to the lettering Of these
strips, painting the names of the clubs
or association ordering the banners,
the captions for the portraits and the
Offices for which the nominees are to
contend. Two men work en- the cen
terpieces, the eagle and the shield and
the "E Plurihus Unum," without which
no political party with hope Of secur-
ing votes would fling its banner to the
breeze. One man works on the special
portraits and the rest assemble the
various parts, sew the strips together
with sewing machines or get down on
the floor and hand sew them to the
netting.
Some of the men employed in the
making of the campaign banner are
artists who have come into the field
by the straight gate. but the majority
have climbed over the wall. The for
mer class is made up of graduates
from the art schools, who find in the
great demand for their services in the
campaign rush a more remunerative
field than in painting pictures that no
one will buy. 1t is this class that at
tends TO the painting Of the portraits
of candidates. BY working on the same
faces day by day, these men become
so skillful and so quick that they can
paint a Roosevelt or a Parker in the
dark with their eyes shut, and paint
II as true to life as the standard of
the campaign banner industry requires.
Whatever the difference OF opinion
between the TlNdl pdIAless DOtn are
agreed on the value of the campaign
banner as a means OF arousing en-
thusiasm among the voters. Great is
the excitement when the banner is
holstea to its place in the center OF
the street. while the band plays and
the faithful cheer. Hang your ban
ners on the outer wall. that all may
see," was the advice of the late Sena-
tor Hanna. And. judging by the ap-
pearance OF the streets, even at this
early period Of the campaign, both
parties are strenuously endeavoring to
follow out this advice.