Love's Labor Lost, from America c. 1884 - 1889

Bernard Gillam created "Love's Labor Lost" as a drawing around 1889, and it's now held at the Art Institute of Chicago. The composition is dominated by a central figure, the "tattooed man," whose body becomes a canvas for inscriptions of text in various fonts and sizes. These inscribed words—such as "Mulligan Letters," "Pacific R.R. Bonds," and "Monopoly"—are not merely decorative; they function as signs, each pointing to specific instances of corruption and political maneuvering of the era. The busy, almost chaotic arrangement of these textual tattoos suggests a culture saturated with scandal. The figures surrounding the tattooed man are rendered with careful hatching, adding depth and volume to the scene. The "tattoo artists" are actively engaged in either adding or removing these scandalous markings, emphasizing the performative nature of political critique. Gillam uses the body as a site of public discourse, challenging fixed meanings of patriotism.