Circus Wagon Figure: "Dancing Girl"
1935/1942
Medium
watercolor, graphite, and gouache on paper
Dimensions
overall: 62 x 26.6 cm (24 7/16 x 10 1/2 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.9202
Art Historical Context
Behold the vibrant *Circus Wagon Figure:Dancing Girl"* by Matulis, a captivating watercolor, graphite, and gouache rendering on paper created between 1935 and 1942. Measuring 62 x 26.6 cm, this work is part of the esteemed Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) the Great Depression. Matulis, one of many skilled artists commissioned for the initiative, meticulously documented everyday American folk art objects, preserving their cultural essence through precise, colorful illustrations. Circus wagon figures like this "Dancing Girl" were exub...
About the Artist
John Matulis
John Matulis is an artist whose biographical record is not well established in the major art historical literature. No confirmed dates, nationality, or documentation of training have been identified in available scholarship, making it difficult to place him within a specific period, school, or tradition. Works attributed to Matulis in museum collections suggest an individual with developed artist...