Artworks

Willowy Dawn Newkirk was an officer in the National Labor Service, sometimes called the Rocaterranian Conservation Corps. Established in 1955 by President Gorghendi Kahn, the Labor Service built parks and nature reserves within the city limits, expanded Rocaterrania’s mass transit system, and refurbished its infrastructure of roads, highways, and railroad tracks. Kahn even ordered the Labor Service to plant apple trees in the city parks so that street urchins and orphans needn’t starve.

Thousands of previously unemployed citizens found not just jobs in the Labor Service, but lifelong careers. Men, women, and even neutants (androgynous citizens), had a common sense of purpose. Much of the nation had been decimated during its two revolutions and numerous free corps wars, so rebuilding the country became the top priority when Kahn took office.

Personal Significance:

Kahn’s overall plan was referred to as The New Order, and it represented Kuhler’s efforts to build order in his own life, primarily focused around his academic life as a freshman at the University of Colorado. As an environmentalist, he lived by the credo “reduce, recycle, and reuse.” Decades later, after becoming a scientific illustrator at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Kuhler wore the uniform of the National Labor Service officer in everyday life.

Influence:

America’s Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as part of his Great Depression-era New Deal. The Labor Service officer uniform was also partially influenced by uniforms worn by waitresses at a restaurant Kuhler frequented.