Keep 'Em Rolling! (Artillery) | 1941

Keep 'Em Rolling! (Artillery), 1941, by Leo Lionni

This striking propaganda poster employs powerful symbolism through a modernist photomontage design that merges industrial and military imagery with patriotic elements. The left side of the poster features a black and white photograph of a focused worker peering through what appears to be a surveying or precision manufacturing instrument against a blue background. On the right side, the American flag's red and white stripes extend horizontally across the composition, with silhouetted images of anti-aircraft artillery crews manning their guns superimposed on the stripes. The guns are positioned diagonally, creating a sense of dynamic movement and readiness. At the bottom of the poster, the bold slogan "KEEP 'EM ROLLING!" appears in large, tan capital letters, conveying urgency and determination. Small text at the bottom right identifies the poster as being from the "Division of Information, Office for Emergency Management," marking its official governmental source.

This poster was created in 1941 as part of a series commissioned by the United States Government's Division of Information, Office for Emergency Management, several months before America's official entry into World War II. Following the passage of the Lend-Lease Act on March 11, 1941, the United States had begun rapidly expanding its industrial production to supply war materials to Allied nations fighting against Nazi Germany, particularly Great Britain. The "Keep 'Em Rolling!" slogan was a popular wartime production encouragement phrase, urging American workers to maintain and increase manufacturing output to support the war effort. This poster was one of four in a series that used similar design elements to connect domestic industrial production with military action abroad, visually linking the work of factory employees with frontline combat. The series effectively communicated how American manufacturing directly supported Allied military efforts, even before the United States officially entered the conflict following the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

Leo Lionni (1910-1999) was a remarkably versatile artist whose career spanned graphic design, advertising, children's book illustration, and fine art. Born in Amsterdam, he grew up in Italy before immigrating to the United States in 1939 to escape the fascist regime, arriving just as World War II was beginning in Europe. Shortly after his arrival, he found employment with the advertising firm N.W. Ayer, where his European-influenced design sensibilities and modernist approach quickly earned him recognition. Lionni was among a group of pioneering designers, including Herbert Matter, Lester Beall, and Milton Ackoff, who brought photographic poster illustration to new heights in America, introducing the clean asymmetry of Bauhaus design principles to mainstream American visual culture. His wartime posters for the Office of Emergency Management demonstrated his skill in combining photomontage with bold graphic elements to create visually striking and emotionally resonant propaganda. After the war, Lionni became the art director for Fortune magazine, a position he held until 1960, while also creating advertising for major clients including Olivetti typewriters, Chrysler, and Ford. In the latter part of his career, Lionni became internationally known for his award-winning children's books, beginning with "Little Blue and Little Yellow" (1959), and eventually authoring more than 40 books that often explored themes of self-discovery and social relationships through simple, artistic imagery.