Double Mold
c. 1938
Medium
watercolor, graphite, colored pencil, and heightening on paperboard.
Dimensions
overall: 38 x 27.9 cm (14 15/16 x 11 in.) Original IAD Object: 3 3/4" High 4 1/8" Dia.(base) 2" Dia.(top)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.5105
Art Historical Context
**Double Mold**, a meticulously rendered study by Fritz Boehmer around 1938, captures the simplicity of an everyday American artifact. Created as part of the Index of American Design (IAD)—a landmark WPA Federal Art Project during the Great Depression—this watercolor, graphite, colored pencil and heightening on paper (38 x 27.9 cm) exemplifies program's mission to document and celebrate the nation's folk art and material culture. Boehmer's precise draftsmanship brings to life a modest double mold object, standing 3¾ inches high with a 4⅛-inch base diameter tapering to 2 inches at the top, sugg...
About the Artist
Fritz Boehmer
Fritz Boehmer (1875–1942) was a Czech-born American painter whose career bridged personal portraiture and public documentation of folk art traditions. Little is known about his early life or formal training, which remains sparsely documented; however, by 1895, he was producing intimate portraits, such as *Gertrud Boehmer* at the Toledo Museum of Art, suggesting skill in miniature and figure work h...