Jug

Art Historical Context

Behold the delicate rendering of a *Jug* by Yolande Delasser, created around 1937 as part of the Index of American Design (IAD). This watercolor and graphite work on paperboard, measuring 22.5 x 28.9 cm (8 7/8 x 11 3/8 in.), captures the elegant form of an everyday American ceramic vessel—17 inches high, with a sturdy 6 3/4-inch base tapering to a slender 2 3/4-inch top. Housed in the National Gallery of Art's CG-W Department, it exemplifies the precision and artistry of IAD artists who documented the nation's folk crafts. The IAD, a Depression-era initiative under the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), employed hundreds of artists from 1935 to 1942 to preserve vanishing examples of American design through detailed, full-color renderings. Delasser's piece highlights the functional beauty of utilitarian pottery, blending soft watercolor washes for texture and graphite for sharp outlines, making the ordinary jug a study in proportion and craftsmanship. Today, this work serves as a cultural time capsule, safeguarding the ingenuity of American makers amid economic hardship. It invites us to appreciate how simple objects embody heritage, bridging art and everyday life in the virtual galleries of the National Gallery of Art.

About the Artist

Yolande Delasser · 1855–present

Yolande Delasser was an American artist active during the mid-1930s, best known for her meticulous contributions to the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Amid the Great Depression, this ambitious New Deal initiative commissioned artists to document America's rich heritage of folk art and utilitarian objects through precise watercolor ren...