Endgame

Artist Milton Glaser United States, 1929 - 2020

Date2005

Dimensions36 x 24 in. (91.4 x 61 cm)

ClassificationsPoster

Credit LinePoster House Permanent Collection

Terms

Object numberPH.7895

DescriptionWhile the “alert and knowledgeable citizenry” that Eisenhower called for in 1961 as a counterweight to the inclination of many governments to arm themselves with an abundance of nuclear weapons has undoubtedly played a role in gradual disarmament, a larger nuclear threat, as indicated by this poster, still exists. Despite having the ability to annihilate the world, international superpowers have always stopped short of actually initiating that cataclysm. In many instances, nuclear powers have avoided using their weapons against nonnuclear countries, occasionally suffering defeat rather than start a nuclear war. Antinuclear activism is not currently a major cultural force, despite the fact that President Vladimir Putin withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty in 2019 and has threatened nuclear action as part of his war of aggression against Ukraine. Additionally, China has recently stated that it intends to triple its nuclear arsenal from 500 to 1,500 warheads by 2035. Even the New START Treaty established in 2011 to reduce and limit nuclear arms in the United States and the Russian Federation is set to expire in 2026. Today, there are more than 12,100 known nuclear warheads in existence, all of which are held by the United States, Russia, France, China, the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea.

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