Drunkenness has been depicted in art for centuries.

Yet it has rarely been studied.

Our goal, as a public digital archive, is to start researching. We have a lot to do.

So… where do we start?

Case Studies: 19th-Century Depictions of Drunkenness in the U.S.

Keying Up

William Merritt Chase
The Temperance Lesson

Edward Edmondson Jr
The Return of Rip Van Winkle

John Quidor
Shin-gós-se-moon,Big Sail, a Chief

George Catlin
The Drunkards Progress

Nathaniel Currier
Madame Gautreau Drinking a Toast

John Singer Sargent
The Unusual Irish Way of Doing Things

Thomas Nast

Case Studies

Why start here? Well… for a couple of reasons:

The 1800’s:

It’s not quite at the time of prohibition, which is more than we can chew at the moment. Instead, we chose around the time that the term “addiction” was coined. It was a time of the theory of evolution and the beginning of eugenics, resulting in many dehumanizing naratives.

The United States:

People talk about Hogarth a lot. We need to move on from him for a bit. The U.S. did have Prohibition, and within society, there are historically contradictory views on alcohol consumption and much regulation, making it a subject fit for conversation.

Current harm reduction practices are breaking down Contemporary views of abstinence and addiction. It is important to understand how visual narative history impacts our contemporary understanding of the world. Art History scholars in the United States need to start public conversations with people in the addiction community.

The founder of the website is also from the States and currently only reads English.

Drunkenness:

As we get into other substances, there is a lot of transnational research that is necessary. This is incredibly important work, but not as feasible at the moment. Often other substances are added to show further progression of addiction and falling into a “sinful” and “lazy” life. This is something we would love to research in the future. If you have any insites or things you would like to see please send them our way!