Louis Schaettle, born Chicago, IL - Order - ca. 1916 - T-Shirt

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Louis Schaettle, born Chicago, IL - Order - ca. 1916 - T-Shirt

This horizontal allegorical study by Louis Schaettle, painted around 1916, sets two robed women on either side of a scene of law and justice, with the word ORDER across its upper edge.

Visual Elements & Composition

The layout is symmetrical and framed. On the left, a veiled woman holds scales aloft and rests a sword at her side beneath the banner UPHOLD THE RIGHT. On the right, a crowned woman raises a glowing orb and holds an open book beneath PREVENT THE WRONG. Between them sit a seated man in red drapery, a kneeling figure in chains, a lamp, books and a reclining figure. A band along the base reads JUSTICE, EQUALITY, LIBERTY, TRUTH. The palette is led by deep blue and ivory, with ochre, rust orange and dusky green supporting them.

Meaning & Symbolism

The composition treats civic order as a balance between protection and restraint. The scales and sword stand for the duty to uphold what is right, while the open book and light stand for knowledge and the duty to prevent wrong. The chained figure at the centre shows the consequence of disorder, and the lamp and books point to the deliberation that lawful government depends on. Schaettle, born in Chicago, made this study as a design for a mural programme, in the vein of the civic murals popular in American public buildings. The original is held in the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection.

Reading the Design on a Tee

Symmetry suits a shirt. Both figures and both banners sit at equal distance from the centre, so the design reads as one balanced front when worn. The ORDER heading and the virtues along the base stay legible at chest scale, letting the wearer carry the artwork's full statement of purpose into everyday wear.

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