Wash Day | 1937

Wash Day Rural Electrification Administration, 1937, by Lester Beall

This striking modernist poster employs bold graphics and a minimalist approach to convey its message about rural electrification. Against a vibrant split background of royal blue and bright yellow, the title "WASH DAY" appears in large yellow capital letters at the top. The central image depicts a black silhouette of a rural house with a white washing machine inside, symbolising the domestic transformation brought by electricity. Five white directional arrows point towards the washing machine, dramatically emphasising its importance and the flow of electric power. The sharp contrast between the black silhouette and white elements creates a powerful visual impact, whilst the bold text "RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION" appears in blue at the bottom of the poster.

The Rural Electrification Administration (REA) was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt through Executive Order 7037 on May 11, 1935, as part of his New Deal programme to combat the Great Depression. The initiative was later formalised by Congress with the Rural Electrification Act of 1936. At this time, whilst nearly 90% of urban dwellers enjoyed the benefits of electricity, only 10% of rural Americans had access to electrical power. Private utility companies had deemed it unprofitable to extend their services to sparsely populated rural areas. The REA addressed this disparity by providing low-interest federal loans to local cooperative electric companies formed by farmers and rural residents. This 1937 poster was part of the REA's first series of promotional materials designed to educate rural Americans about the practical benefits of electricity. The focus on "Wash Day" highlighted how electrical appliances could transform the arduous task of laundry, which traditionally required hours of manual labour carrying water, heating it over fires, scrubbing clothes by hand, and wringing them out—a particularly burdensome chore for rural women.

Lester Beall (1903-1969) was one of America's most innovative and influential graphic designers, pivotal in introducing European modernist design principles to American commercial art. After graduating with a degree in art history from the University of Chicago and working in Chicago's advertising industry, Beall moved to New York in 1935 and established his design studio in Connecticut the following year. His pioneering work for the REA—comprising three series of posters between 1937 and 1941—is considered his masterpiece and won him the distinction of being the first graphic designer to have a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1937. Beall's signature style combined elements of European avant-garde movements, including Constructivism, Dada, and the New Typography, with distinctively American sensibilities. He employed primary colours, bold typography, photomontage, and geometric shapes to create dynamic visual communications.