Baby Shoe

Art Historical Context

This watercolor and graphite rendering of a baby shoe, around 1937 by Margaret Concha, forms part of the Index of American Design at the National Gallery of Art. Launched during the Great Depression as a Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration, the Index employed artists to document America's folk art, crafts, and decorative objects through highly accurate illustrations. Concha's delicate work captures the form and details of this small everyday item, reflecting the project's goal of preserving a visual record of the nation's design heritage. Executed in watercolor over graphite on paper, the drawing measures roughly 11 by 9 inches and exemplifies the precise, documentary technique used across the Index. Artists focused on objects from earlier American periods, rendering textures, colors, and construction with scientific care so that even humble items like clothing and toys could be studied and appreciated. These illustrations not only supported artists financially during economic hardship but also highlighted the ingenuity found in ordinary American life. Today the collection offers enduring insight into historical material culture, reminding viewers of the beauty and craftsmanship in objects that might otherwise have faded from memory. Concha's contribution stands as a quiet yet evocative example of how art can safeguard cultural history for future generations.

About the Artist

Margaret Concha · 1897–1994

Margaret Concha is an artist whose life and career remain incompletely documented in the major scholarly literature on art history. No confirmed birth or death dates have been established, and details of her training, nationality, and primary working period are not reliably recorded in available sources. The works attributed to her suggest engagement with the visual traditions of her era, though ...