A 1949 graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in arts education, Statsinger became known for oversized drawings such as this one reflecting disparate cultures, both ancient and modern. Like many of her Monster Roster peers, Statsinger showed her work in the Exhibition Momentum, an alternative salon for postwar Chicago artists whose work wasn’t included in the annual Art Institute exhibitions of local artists. In 1952, however, the museum mounted a solo presentation of her drawings. The Flower and the Sword recalls the forms of medieval art, especially the Bayeux Tapestry, an object that especially engaged Statsinger.