By Mircy Coca Soriano
Oyster Factory (1939), is a striking depiction of Black oyster shuckers working in a South Carolina factory. This watercolor and colored pencil work – on view at The Phillips Collection -- offers a vivid portrait of Black working-class life in America in the early 20th century. While the painting does not directly reference labor unions, its depiction of forced labor, racial inequality, and collective effort resonates deeply with the struggles they sought to address during this period.
When I first saw Laura Douglas's Oyster Factory yesterday, I was struck by the intrigue, the rawness, and the depth of the scene, despite its historical context. The image of Black workers shucking oysters in a crowded factory evoked a sense of physical exhaustion and quiet determination; even the way they all have a hunched posture makes me think their physical and mental state is deteriorating. I could almost feel the weight of their labor, the steady pace of work, and the silence that must have accompanied such grueling tasks. It wasn't just a snapshot of a moment; it was a story of struggle, dignity, and a deeper, unspoken connection to a fight for justice that many of us are still waging today.
Douglas's painting, created in 1939, captures the lives of those often marginalized by history: Black workers in the American South, working with their hands to build an economy that, for many, left them behind. And while Oyster Factory doesn't explicitly portray a union or labor organization, it speaks volumes about the kinds of work unions struggled to address: the long hours, unsafe conditions, low wages, and racialized exclusions that made union representation nearly impossible for Black workers, particularly in the South.
But then there’s also the power of their collective effort in the painting. Even though we don’t see a formal union here, we see workers bound together by a shared task. Their physical proximity and the shared rhythm of their labor highlight an unspoken unity a reminder that when people work together, they become stronger. This, to me, feels like the essence of unionism: the strength that comes from recognizing that no worker is truly alone. Even in a setting that’s hostile to their rights and safety, these workers are, in their own way, performing collective work. In this way, the painting serves as a quiet, powerful reminder of the potential of unity. Even without a formal union, the workers in Oyster Factory are still bound together by their labor and their struggle. It made me think about all the movements, past and present, where collective effort has been the only path to change.
LHF intern Mircy Coca Soriano is a junior at Union College in Schenectady, NY.