In 1884 Young moved to Chicago, where he studied art and supported himself by drawing newspaper cartoons. Later he also studied art in New York City and Paris. After settling in New York City permanently around 1903, he became a socialist and was active in campaigns for woman suffrage, labour organization, the abolition of child labour, and racial equality.

His concerns were reflected in his cartoons, especially those for The Masses (1911–17), one of the best known of which depicted a ragged little boy looking at the sky and saying to his young companion, “Chee, Annie, look at the stars, thick as bedbugs!” That kind of compassionate satire, rather than bitter attack, characterized his simple, economical drawings. His autobiography, Art Young: His Life and Times, appeared in 1939.