1943 For Their Sake Keep Well Abbott Laboratories Georges Schreiber WWII

Date: 1943
Artist: Schreiber, Georges
Size (in): 20” x 13”
Size (cm): 50.8 x 33
Condition: A-
Linen backed: No

Abbott Laboratories commissioned a great deal of propaganda themed artwork during WWII and made a lot of it available to the Federal government for reproduction.  Some of the WWII era propaganda themed artwork commissioned by Abbott Laboratories was used by the company for posters, brochures, magazine covers and for advertising inserts that appeared in selected medical journals.  In 1943 Abbott Laboratories issued a portfolio of the company’s WWII themed artwork titled “All-In” which included actual tipped-in samples of mini posters, brochures, magazine covers and advertising inserts.  This All-In portfolio is extremely rare and was probably only available for use as a sales aid by the company’s salespeople. 

Abbott Laboratories commissioned Belgian-American illustrator Georges Schrieber to create this poster shortly after the United States entered WWII and included it as a tipped in specimen in the 1943 All-In portfolio.  For this poster Schrieber renders an image of American soldiers wearing the older style M1917A1 “Kelly” helmets marching forward with military aircraft and contrails filling the sky above them.   Text across the bottom of the poster reads: 

For their sake..KEEP WELL - Keep Your Resistance High – Don’t Neglect Minor Ills – Presented in the Public Interest by This Pharmacy and Abbott Laboratories  

This poster is printed one side only, folded as issued and folds open to about 20” x 13”.  Schrieber’s name and the date ’42 are signed in print in the upper right corner of the poster.  The back of the poster has a few small areas of contact surface loss to paper (which don’t show on the front) from having been tipped into the Abbott Laboratories All-In WWII artwork portfolio.  Overall condition is otherwise near mint for this very rare vintage original.