Chalkware Group - Lamb and Sheep

Art Historical Context

Behold the delicate charm of *Chalkware Group - Lamb Sheep*, a captivating watercolor, graphite, and gouache by artist Mina Lowry, created around 1938. This work captures a pair of whimsical chalkware figures—molded plaster sculptures popular in 19th-century American folk, often hand-painted with vibrant enamels to adorn homes as affordable decorative treasures. Lowry's precise depiction, on a 31.8 × 40.5 cm sheet of paperboard, meticulously records the original object's modest scale (6 1/2" high; 8 1/2" wide; 3 5/8" deep), highlighting their gentle curves and pastoral innocence. As part of the Index of American Design (IAD), a groundbreaking WPA Federal Art Project from 1935–1942, this piece exemplifies a national effort to document and celebrate everyday American craftsmanship. Artists like Lowry employed mixed media techniques—watercolor for luminous color, graphite for fine lines, and gouache for opaque depth—to create faithful, museum-quality records of folk objects at risk of loss. Housed in the National Gallery of Art's collection, it underscores the cultural importance of chalkware as a democratic art form, bridging humble households and high art, inviting us to appreciate the ingenuity of America's vernacular heritage.

About the Artist

Mina Lowry · 1894–1942

Mina Lowry (1894–1942), an American artist born in Canada, emerged as a prominent portrait painter whose career bridged traditional portraiture and the documentation of American folk art. Immigrating to Buffalo, New York, with her family around 1901, she honed her skills early on, winning first prize for modeling at the Albright Art School and studying under the esteemed Florence J. Bach. Lowry fu...