Jester
c. 1938
Medium
watercolor, gouache, and graphite on paper
Dimensions
overall: 46.7 x 31.2 cm (18 3/8 x 12 5/16 in.) Original IAD Object: 20" high
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.16868
Art Historical Context
**Jester**, created around 1938 by artist Elmer Weise, is a watercolor, gouache, graphite rendering on paper, measuring 46.7 x 31.2 cm. This work belongs to the Index of American Design (IAD), a landmark Federal Art Project from the Great Depression era (1935–1942). Weise meticulously documented a 20-inch-high folk art carving of a jester, capturing its whimsical carved wooden form with vibrant colors and fine graphite details. The IAD commissioned over 18,000 such precise illustrations to preserve America's rich heritage of decorative and folk arts, from colonial furniture to vernacular carv...
About the Artist
Elmer Weise
Elmer Weise was an American artist active around 1935, best known for his meticulous contributions to the Index of American Design, a New Deal-era Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Launched in 1935, this ambitious initiative employed artists across the United States to document the nation's folk art, crafts, and utilitarian objects through precise watercolor render...