Artist:
Rube Goldberg
(American, 1883 - 1970)
Perpetual Motion Machine
Medium: Pen and ink on paper
Date: 1938-1950
Dimensions:
15 5/8 × 14 3/8 in. (39.7 × 36.5 cm)
Accession number: 82.16.286
Copyright: © Rube Goldberg Inc.
Label Copy:
In the early decades of the 20th century, Rube Goldberg, a former engineer-turned illustrator, created cartoons filled with complicated, convoluted contraptions designed to perform simple tasks. His Perpetual Motion Machine - An Invention is a prime example of the comic illustrations that earned Goldberg the title of "greatest engineering cartoonist." He also worked as a sports cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle and the New York Evening Mail. In 1939 Goldberg created political cartoons and comic strips for the New York Sun. In 1948 he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his work.
In the early decades of the 20th century, Rube Goldberg, a former engineer-turned illustrator, created cartoons filled with complicated, convoluted contraptions designed to perform simple tasks. His Perpetual Motion Machine - An Invention is a prime example of the comic illustrations that earned Goldberg the title of "greatest engineering cartoonist." He also worked as a sports cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle and the New York Evening Mail. In 1939 Goldberg created political cartoons and comic strips for the New York Sun. In 1948 he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his work.