Candle Stand
c. 1938
Medium
watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 48.8 x 36.1 cm (19 3/16 x 14 3/16 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.12181
Art Historical Context
**Candle Stand**, a meticulous rendering by artist Paul Ward around 1938, captures the simplicity of an early American furniture piece through watercolor, graphite, and colored on paperboard (48.8 x 36.1 cm). This work belongs to the *Index of American Design*, landmark WPA Federal Art Project from the Great Depression era (1935–1942), where artists documented everyday objects to celebrate the nation's folk art heritage. Ward’s precise technique blends the fluidity of watercolor for rich tones, graphite for fine lines, and colored pencil for subtle highlights, creating a vivid, almost three-d...
About the Artist
Paul Ward
Paul Ward was an American artist who contributed to the Index of American Design during the New Deal era, creating detailed watercolor renderings of American decorative objects that are now held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. His documented works include Lamp and Camphene Lamp, both rendered in watercolor and graphite on paperboard and created between 1935 and...