Women and the Index of American Design

Women and the Index of American Design is an upcoming exhibition at the National Gallery of Art that shines a spotlight on the vital contributions of women artists to one of the most ambitious documentation projects in American art history. Between 1935 and 1942, the U.S. government commissioned more than 18,000 watercolors to record works of American folk, decorative, and industrial art. Women played a pivotal role in this endeavor, and this installation brings together nearly 50 of those drawings, created by women artists for the Index of American Design. The watercolors capture a wide range of subjects, including embroideries, quilt designs, toys, weather vanes, and household objects, offering a window into the material culture of the American past.

The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art and curated by Amy Johnston, associate curator of collections in the department of old master drawings. It draws from the Gallery's vast holdings of the Index, a collection of 18,257 watercolor works by some 1,000 artists. The Index was a Federal Art Project of the Great Depression, created to identify and preserve a national, ancestral aesthetic for the United States. The watercolors depict American folk and decorative arts objects from the colonial period through 1900, making this exhibition both an artistic showcase and a historical exploration of how American design heritage was documented and defined.

When: January 16 through June 13, 2027.

Location: East Building, Ground Level, Gallery E106, National Gallery of Art, 6th and Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC 20565.

Admission: Free; passes are not required.

Featured works: Nearly 50 watercolor drawings made by women artists for the Index of American Design, depicting embroideries, quilt designs, toys, weather vanes, household objects, and other examples of American folk and decorative art.

Organization: Organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Curator: Amy Johnston, associate curator of collections, department of old master drawings, National Gallery of Art.

Background on the Index: The Index of American Design comprises 18,257 watercolor works by approximately 1,000 artists. It was a Federal Art Project dating to the Great Depression, aiming to identify and preserve a national, ancestral aesthetic by documenting American folk and decorative arts objects from the colonial period through 1900.