Reading in the Subway

Reading in the Subway — John Sloan. 1926.

Medium: etching. Dimensions: Platemark: 12.5 x 10.1 cm (4 15/16 x 4 in.); Sheet: 28 x 23.8 cm (11 x 9 3/8 in.).

Collection record: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

While etiquette manuals in the Victorian era restricted eye contact between strangers, such strictures were challenged by the culture emerging in New York City in the first decades of the 1900s. Public transportation provided people watching of the type unheard of just decades before—especially of women unaccompanied on their commute to office or retail jobs. Here, John Sloan depicted a woman lost in a book. Her crossed legs and the hint of a garter are on display. Never one to miss an opportunity for cheeky humor, Sloan added an advertisement behind the girl, reading “Rub with Sloan’s Ointment.”

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.