Rattle
1935/1942
Medium
watercolor and graphite on paper
Dimensions
overall: 26.9 x 36.8 cm (10 9/16 x 14 1/2 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.14735
Art Historical Context
Behold the delicate rendering *Rattle* by William Kieckhofel, created between 1935 and 1942 as part of the Index of American Design. This watercolor and graphite work on paper, measuring 26.9 x 36.8 cm, captures the essence of an everyday American folk object—a charming rattle—through meticulous detail and vibrant color. Housed in the National Gallery of Art, it exemplifies the Index's mission to celebrate the nation's artistic heritage. The Index of American Design, a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project during the Great Depression, employed artists like Kieckhofel to document vanishi...
About the Artist
William Kieckhofel
William Kieckhofel was an American artist active in the 1930s and early 1940s, best known for his contributions to the Index of American Design, the ambitious New Deal-era documentation project administered under the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration. Working in watercolor, colored pencil, and graphite on paper, Kieckhofel produced meticulous renderings of American decorativ...