Oil Refining, Whiting, Indiana 1915

Joseph Pennell created this print of an oil refinery in Whiting, Indiana, using the technique of lithography. Lithography involves drawing on a flat stone or metal plate with a greasy crayon, then treating the surface so that ink adheres only to the drawn areas. This process, traditionally a commercial printing method, allowed Pennell to capture the industrial landscape with stark contrasts and atmospheric effects. The heavy blacks and smoky grays evoke the gritty reality of oil refining, a process central to early 20th-century industry. The stark industrial forms create an atmosphere laden with the implications of energy production. Pennell’s choice of lithography, a technique often associated with mass production, underscores the connection between art and industry. By using a printmaking medium to portray a scene of industrial labor and output, he blurs the boundaries between fine art and the processes that shape everyday life. Approaching this work through the lens of its materiality and making, allows us to consider the social and economic context of its creation.