Crock

Art Historical Context

**Crock**, a delicate watercolor and graphite rendering on paperboard by artists George Loughridge and Yol Delasser (c. 1937/1938), captures the elegance of a traditional American ceramic crock. Measuring about 29.1 x 22.6 cm, this precise depiction portrays the original object's sturdy form—9 inches high with a 9½-inch top diameter and 9⅝-inch base—highlighting its practical, bulbous shape ideal for storage, pickling, or fermentation in and early American households. Created as part of the *Index of American Design*, a Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) from 1935 to 1942, this work exemplifies efforts during the Great Depression to document and celebrate everyday American folk art. Housed in the National Gallery of Art's collection (Department CG-W), it preserves the craftsmanship of utilitarian ceramics that reflected regional traditions and self-reliance. The artists' meticulous use of watercolor for subtle glazes and graphite for sharp contours brings the crock's texture and form to life, underscoring the Index's goal of accurate, artistic documentation. Today, it invites visitors to appreciate how ordinary objects embody cultural heritage, bridging art and history with quiet beauty.