surrounded by colleagues who sought to reject the classical style with impressionistic and post-impressionistic styles, Young was disinterested in depicting idyllic or naturalistic images and was more concerned with depicting the realities of life that surrounded him. Consequently, Young's work is often associated with social realism, as his work depicted laborers, immigrants, minorities, the West, and man's interaction with nature. At the time, Young felt isolated by his traditionalist instructors and colleagues who penned Young's work as "dishonest". The size of his work ranged from larger monuments to small sculptures which he typically did in the social realist style. His most recurring subject matter included animals, Native Americans, the boxing ring, ranch life, and laborers. Young greatly admired the work of Cyrus Dallin and Young's work often had parallels to that of Dallin's. Mahonri Young was versatile in his subject matter and methods, yet his works were united in "powerful elegance". He was proficient in various mediums and techniques such as etching, drawing, watercolor, oil, gouache, and sculpture, which included his lesser known work on medals and reliefs. Even though he is known for his sculpture, he always kept a sketchbook with him and would use pen and ink, oil, and watercolor to depict scenes he saw on the farm. However while art critic, Frank Jewett Mather praised Young's drawings, etchings, and sculpture, he qualified Young's painting as average, suggesting that Young may have commenced painting at too old of an age or perhaps did not approach it with the same effort and care with which he approached his other mediums. Additionally, compared Young's work to that of Jean-François Millet, Honoré Daumier, and Constantin Meunier. Though Young vehemently denied it, some critics accused Young of imitating Millet's work. Young's work, particularly his earlier pieces, was also heavily influenced by Auguste Rodin. Young's sculpture of fighting boxers, Right to the Jaw is characteristic of Rodin's style with its curves and opposing diagonal movements. Young's experience as a sketch artist for the Salt Lake Tribune gave him a spontaneous style that he believed benefited his art. Young excelled in "depicting figures in motion" and "the psychological nuances of gesture". Rather than emphasize light, appearance, and technical skill as had prevailed in traditionalist art, Young preferred to emphasize rhythm, balance, movement, form, and design. Legacy Mahonri Young's career lasted more than fifty years with his works displayed in over fifty museums and galleries