Figurine
c. 1940
Medium
watercolor and graphite on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 35.6 x 24.9 cm (14 x 9 13/16 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.9935
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the National Gallery of Art's showcase of the Index of American! "Figurine," created around 1940 by artist Mina Lowry, is a captivating watercolor and graphite rendering on paperboard, measuring 35.6 x 24.9 cm. Lowry, one of many talented artists commissioned for this project, meticulously captured the essence of an American design object—a figurine—highlighting its form, color, and texture with remarkable precision. This work emerged from the Index of American Design, a Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) the Great Depression (193–1942). Artists like Lowry pr...
About the Artist
Mina Lowry
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...