rosie the riveter

Back in 2018 the National Archives at New York City located in downtown manhattan, reached out to me asking if I would volunteer my time by dressing as Rosie the Riveter for a special event they were having.

Every year, for one night only, typically in June, the National Archives, in partnership with the Downtown Cultural Group hosts the Night at the Museums event, which allows visitors of all ages access to a variety of museums in the downtown area, giving visitors a chance to explore the history and heritage of New York City for free!

Every Year the National Archives in particular, chooses a theme for their program to present throughout the duration of the event. The theme of the program generally focuses on either a specific time period, historical turn of events, or features a historical figure. Past years have included historical interpreters such as John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Eleanor Roosevelt. In 2018 the program focused on women in history and highlighted the historical icon Rosie the Riveter! They pulled the “We Can Do It” campaign poster from the archives and showed it on display next to an even larger poster where any visitor could come by and take a picture with (me) Rosie the Riveter, as well as participate in various interactive activities throughout the resource and research rooms.

Who is Rosie the Riveter?

Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon representing the women who entered the workforce during World War II. These women sometimes took entirely new jobs replacing the male workers who joined the military, some included working in factories and shipyards. The underlying theme of the campaign was to show that social change was necessary during this time which meant bringing women out of the house/kitchen and into the workforce, proving that they have the potential to be and do more than what society expected of them.

It is still in question as to whether or not Rosie the Riveter was based on a real person, or if she is a fictional character designed to represent the “eager to work” woman. Rumor has it that there are two possible women she could be based off, either, Rose Will Monroe or Naomi Parker Fraley, but no one actually knows which one. Regardless, Rosie the Riveter was intended to represent all women.

I was honored to be asked to participate in this special event not only because it meant I was able to step into a role and play a different character other than myself for a night, but also because I respect and appreciate what Rosie the Riveter represented and still represents today – that women are empowered and can do anything they set their mind to, because they have the strength to do so, and do it all with style none the less.

If someone asked you, what historical figure do you think you look like the most? Who would you say? It is odd to think about, but imagine if you were not born in this century, who would you have been back then? What do you think you would look like?

Honestly, I do think I would choose Rosie the Riveter every time. I never really thought about it until I was standing in the rotunda of the National Archives dressed in combat boots, red stockings, a navy jumpsuit with the sleeves rolled, my hair tied up with a red bandanna and people asking to take their picture with me. Yes, I will admit it made me feel like someone famous having random strangers coming up to me asking to take a picture – not something I am used to but something Rosie got used to real quick. Honestly, most of the tourist who visited had no idea who Rosie the Riveter was but they starred in amazement as to how much I looked like the original poster.

question: why were so many people convinced that you were the reincarnate of Rosie the Riveter?

answer: the power of makeup!

My ability to carefully focus on her facial features and the makeup look that women during that time would have had made my costume that much more convincing. Yes, I was born with brown hair and blue eyes, so I already looked a little bit like her but the selling point, to convince the people that I was in fact Rosie the Riveter was all in the makeup. I drew on a strong brow, with little to no eye shadow, emphasized my eyelashes with the help of a little wing-tip eyeliner, added some blush and a strong contour with a pop of red on my lips. Now you are probably wondering why the soft look with a stark contrast – well that’s because women during the 1940s had a very soft and feminine look. They needed to look pretty at all times for the men, but to show that Rosie was strong enough and capable of doing a mans job they gave her some more masculine features such as strong cheekbones and sharp jawline, short nails and defined biceps. She did not wear any jewelry and although her hair was curled all nice it was back in a bandanna, proving she was ready to work! Although I posed for pictures with a smile and a flexed bicep, the original poster shows a soft smile with a stern look implying that Rosie means business and wanted to be taken seriously.

Now I know that if being a makeup artist does not work out at least I will always have a promising gig at impersonating Rosie the Riveter.