Advertisement for Cream of Wheat
Date1909
Artist
John N. Howitt
(American illustrator, 1885–1958)
Illustration CitationAdvertisment for Cream of Wheat cereal
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions30 × 20 in. (76.2 × 50.8 cm)
frame: 33 7/8 × 23 7/8 in. (86 × 60.6 cm)
frame: 33 7/8 × 23 7/8 in. (86 × 60.6 cm)
Credit LineGayle and Alene Hoskins Endowment Fund, 2007
Object number2007-36
On View
Not on viewClassificationsPAINTING
Label TextHere the recognizable image of Cream of Wheat’s racially offensive mascot, the Black cook Rastus, watches as a group of young boys playing pirates unearth their buried “treasure,” a wooden crate featuring the breakfast cereal’s logo. The wooden crate – a notable feature of modern food development and sanitary distribution – alludes to Cream of Wheat’s commitment to nationwide delivery and standardized excellence.Like Aunt Jemima’s pancake syrup – another well-loved yet problematic breakfast brand – Cream of Wheat regularly used brand symbols and mascots in its advertisements to promote brand recognizability and to convey their product’s high quality. Beginning in 1896, Cream of Wheat also hired prominent magazine artists to paint the advertisements, adding an air of prestige to the company as well.
John Newton Howitt was one of the many celebrated illustrators invited by the Cream of Wheat company to contribute to its advertising campaign. After studying at the Art Students League in New York, Howitt established his own studio. Howitt enjoyed a successful career illustrating for advertisements and magazines – including Red Book, Woman’s Home Companion, MacLean’s, and Scribner’s – until the Great Depression forced him to paint for pulp magazines, an activity he disliked intensely.
