The Chicago Platform and Candidate

Art Historical Context

Created in 1864 by the renowned firm Currier & Ives, this lithograph titled *The Chicago Platform and Candidate* offers a sharp satirical glimpse into one of the most contentious presidential elections in American history. Published as a hand-colored print, it captures the Democratic National Convention held in Chicago year, where General George B. McClellan emerged as the party’s nominee to challenge Abraham Lincoln. The work draws in prominent political figures of the era, including Jefferson Davis and Clement Vallandigham, to lampoon the Democratic platform’s perceived sympathies toward the Confederacy during the Civil War. Lithography was an ideal medium for Currier & Ives, allowing them to produce affordable, widely distributed images that reached a broad public audience. The print’s compact format and pointed imagery reflect the firm’s signature style of blending humor with political commentary, making complex national debates accessible through visual storytelling. As a product of its time, the work highlights how popular prints served as both entertainment and tools of persuasion in 19th-century America. Today housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection of drawings and prints, this piece remains a vivid reminder of the fierce partisan divisions that shaped the Civil War era. Its satirical edge invites viewers to consider how art and politics have long intersected to shape public opinion.

About the Artist

Fernando Wood|Louis Maurer|General George B. McClellan|Jefferson Davis|Clement Laird Vallandigham|Currier & Ives (American|American, born Germany| |American|American|American) · 1812 |1832 | |1808 |1820 |1857 –1881 |1932 | |1889 |1871 |1907

American, 1812–1881|American (born Germany), Biebrich 1832–1932 New York|American, Phildadelphia, Pennsylvania 1826-1885 Orange, New Jersey|American, Fairview, Kentucky 1808–1889 New Orleans, Louisiana|American, 1820–1871|American, active New York, 1857–1907