Chalkware Dog
c. 1941
Medium
watercolor and graphite on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 37.8 x 27.9 cm (14 7/8 x 11 in.) Original IAD Object: 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
1943.8.8318
Art Historical Context
In the whimsical *Chalkware Dog*, created around 1941 by artist Sadie Berman, a charming folk art sculpture springs to life through delicate watercolor and graphite on paperboard. Measuring 37.8 x 27.9 cm, rendering captures a 7-inch-high original chalkware figure—a molded plaster piece hand-painted to mimic ceramics, popular in 19th-century American homes as affordable decorations. Berman's precise lines and soft color washes highlight the dog's alert expression and textured details, evoking the playful spirit of everyday vernacular art. This work is a gem from the Index of American Design (...
About the Artist
Sadie Berman
Sadie Berman (1897–1994) was an American artist best known for her meticulous contributions to the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project initiative under the Works Progress Administration during the late 1930s and early 1940s. This ambitious endeavor commissioned artists across the United States to create precise watercolor renderings of everyday folk art objects, preserving the nation's...