Butter Mold
1937
Medium
watercolor, graphite, and pen and ink on paper
Dimensions
overall: 26.9 x 20.1 cm (10 9/16 x 7 15/16 in.) Original IAD Object: 4 1/2" in diameter; 7" high
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.14744
Art Historical Context
In the heart of the Index of American Design, a New Deal-era project launched in 1935 by the Federal Art Project, Ethel Dougan's 1937 watercolor rendering of a *Butter Mold* captures the charm of everyday American folk art. This precise depiction, measuring 26.9 x 20.1 cm, documents a wooden butter mold—originally 4½ inches in diameter and inches high—used in 19th-century households to shape and decorate butter pats. Such molds, often hand-carved with intricate motifs like animals, florals, or patriotic symbols, blended utility with artistry, reflecting rural craftsmanship and cultural pride....
About the Artist
Ethel Dougan
Ethel Dougan is an artist about whom the historical record offers very limited information. No confirmed birth or death dates have been established, and her nationality remains uncertain, making it difficult to situate her work within a specific artistic tradition or period with confidence. The works attributed to Dougan suggest an individual with genuine artistic training and a developed sensibi...