The all-woman-owned Long Beach bar, Elinor’s Drinkery, celebrated the 100th birthday of Elinor Otto, who had a lengthy career in Long Beach assembling airplanes during and after World War II, on Saturday Oct.12.
During the war, Otto was among the many women who filled industrial roles that were traditionally held by men when a significant portion of the country’s male population was fighting overseas. These women are often called “Rosie the Riveters” after the Norman Rockwell painting which depicts a blue-collar woman in coveralls and a bandana flexing her arm along with the words “We Can Do It!”
Accompanying Elinor’s Drinkery’s birthday celebration of its namesake was the opening of a Rosie the Riveter themed art exhibit.
Thirty artists participated in the art exhibit, Elinor’s Drinkery told the Signal Tribune in an email.
MADE by Millworks, the business Elinor’s Drinkery is located within, put out a call for artists on its website Oct 7. Through this exhibit local artists have an opportunity to not only display their art but to gain revenue from it as well. Most pieces in the “Rosie the Riveter” art exhibit are available for purchase.
Otto was able to interact with the artists and the art she and her fellow “Rosies” inspired. She also autographed an artistic digital rendering of her name by artist Vivian Liu.
The exhibit included art from multiple mediums such as ceramics, painting, photography and digital art.
Artist Kathryn Heaton created two ceramic plates with the sculpted face and arm of an infant emerging from each one, titled “Zombie Eli” and “Baby Elinor.” Both are wearing the bandana associated with Rosie the Riveter but one is painted a sickly looking skin color and the other is wearing lipstick and has long eyelashes.
The wardrobe seen in the original painting by Rockwell was adopted into the artwork of many of the participating artists, such as digital artist Lanny Liu, whose work “Women Who Support Women” depicts three women of varying skin tones in bandanas and clothing similar to Rockwell’s depiction linking arms, centered within the words “Women who support women.”
Lanny also created a digital line drawing of Elinor using her riveter and another digital portrait of an unknown woman wearing a jumpsuit with a name tag that reads “Elinor.” The later work is titled “Elinor at Heart.”
Many pieces in the exhibit focus on the role of women who entered the workplace during WWII and others in the advancement of women’s rights.
The artist Rachel Salzman, known as Mozē, created a watercolor and ink art piece titled “Heart of Gold” which depicts a drawing of a heart along with the phrases “Breathe” and “Eyes Ahead.”
“Elinor Otto has the most amazing spirit–– she is humble, kind, and full of energy,” Salzman told the Signal Tribune. “Once MADE by Millworks announced the Rosie the Riveter inspired art show, I knew I wanted to showcase the strength of heart of all the Rosies. I am an abstract artist currently focused on watercolor and ink. My piece has elements inspired by the Japanese art of repair, Kintsugi, which mends breakage with gold, and free form line drawings symbolizing the experiences of life. I’ve worked with MADE and Elinor on several projects and I am so thankful there is a supportive space for art in all forms. This was a beautiful event in so many ways and I’m honored to be involved.”
Another digital artist who participated in the exhibit, Lorna Alkman, created portraits of well known female writers such as Octavia Butler, Mary Shelley and Mary Wollonstonecraft with distorted bodies, titled “Monsterism.”
A piece of artwork made using metal and photography by Josh Orr depicts an individual holding a sign in a crowd that in turn has a picture on it of a black Rosie the Riveter along with the words “Gender is a Construct.”
Other artists paid tribute to the contributions made by women like Otto during the war effort, as seen in the painting “War Hero” by Larry Talavera, which depicts a woman in an apron and rolled up sleeves riveting a plane door.
Jim Nista, an artist who works in paint, digital art and graphic design, wanted to show a more authentic version of the women who worked in factories during WWII than is usually depicted in Rockwell’s art. Nista researched historical photographs of working women taken during WWII before finding one to base his painting off of.
“I began researching photos of actual ‘Rosies’ along with paintings completed at the same time. I wanted to do a portrait, but not the typical iconic ‘Rosie.’ I wanted to find something less posed and more real. In my research, I found that there was a real effort for photographers and artists to create works to help get women to work on the war effort. I knew that so many of these photos were taken as war propaganda to get women into the workforce, and so many of the ones I found seemed staged,” Nista told the Signal Tribune. “I reviewed series of photos of women working in factories building planes and ships all throughout southern California. The photo I chose was a black and white photo from a Douglas aircraft plant in El Segundo–– I loved the determination and effort she’s showing, and how the original photo seemed a lot less posed than others.”
Besides the art exhibit, Otto’s birthday celebration included decorations, cake and a throne for the honoree with an “Elinor” sash draped across it.
The Rosie the Riveter exhibit will be on display in Elinor’s Drinkery until the end of 2019, the business stated in an email to the Signal Tribune.
