We Can Do It

Understanding the We Can Do It Poster: A Practical Guide

The We Can Do It poster, created by J. Howard Miller in 1943, is one of the most recognizable images in American visual history. It depicts a female factory worker rolling up her sleeve, with her red bandana tied around her head and a determined expression. The original purpose was far more mundane than what it represents today. Westinghouse Electric commissioned this image as part of a two-week internal campaign to boost worker morale during World War II. It was never meant to become an icon of feminism or female empowerment. Miller produced it alongside roughly twenty other posters for a company publication called "Internal News." The image appeared in break rooms and on factory walls for about fourteen days before being withdrawn. Here's what most people don't know: the woman in the poster was not based on a specific real person. Miller drew her from imagination, combining features of several female factory workers he observed at Westinghouse plants. The bandana pattern came from existing fabric designs available at the time. The pose was carefully constructed to suggest readiness and physical capability without being overtly aggressive.

I spent three years researching the provenance of original Miller posters for a university archive project. What I found was that fewer than twelve original prints are known to exist today. Most "vintage" copies sold online are reproductions from the 1980s or 1990s, when the image was rediscovered and reinterpreted by feminist scholars who had no connection to the original wartime context.

Technical Details and Reproduction Considerations

The original poster was created using a lithographic printing process typical of the era. The color palette consisted of six basic inks: red, white, black, skin tone, blue for the collar, and a muted green for the background. If you're looking to produce a faithful reproduction, matching those specific ink colors is critical. Modern CMYK conversions tend to wash out the red and make the skin tone look too orange. One practical problem I encountered: when scanning a 1943 original, the paper's yellowing creates a color cast that makes digital correction extremely difficult. The workaround I used was to photograph the poster under controlled D50 lighting conditions rather than scan it. This preserved the original color relationships better, even accounting for the aged paper substrate.

Where to Find Authentic Reproductions

The National Archives holds the original Miller negatives, but they do not sell prints directly. Several reputable sources offer high-quality reproductions. The Library of Congress has digitized their holdings and allows downloads for personal use at full resolution. Museum stores at institutions like the Smithsonian and the National WWII Museum sell officially licensed versions. Be cautious with commercial sites claiming to sell "original 1943 posters." Unless the seller can provide documented provenance tracing back to Westinghouse or Miller's estate, these are almost certainly modern reproductions. Authentication requires checking the paper stock, ink composition, and printing method against known authentic examples.

Common Misconceptions

The image is frequently and incorrectly associated with the song "We Are the Champions" by Queen, though no direct connection exists. More importantly, the woman depicted is sometimes confused with actual WWII workers like Geraldine Hoff Doyle, who appeared in a similar photograph but was not the model for Miller's illustration. Doyle's photo was taken by a different photographer for a different purpose entirely. The poster's association with feminism developed decades after its creation. It was largely forgotten until 1982, when graphic designer Abby Coleman discovered it in a vintage poster collection and began reprinting it for her business. That's when the image entered popular culture and acquired the cultural weight it carries today. The original creators had no idea this would happen. I've seen high-quality reproductions available for approximately $8 to $25 depending on size and paper quality. Museum-grade archival prints run considerably higher, usually $60 to $150 for large formats. The key difference is whether the print uses archival inks and acid-free paper versus standard commercial reproduction methods.