Melodeon

Art Historical Context

**Melodeon**, a captivating watercolor, graphite, and pen-and-ink rendering by Rex F. Bush 1936, meticulously documents a classic American melodeon—a reed organ popular in 19th-century homes and. Measuring 24 x 28.3 cm, this detailed drawing captures the instrument's ornate wooden case, pedal board, and decorative flourishes, based on an original object standing 31 inches high,22½ inches deep, and ½ inches wide. Bush's work highlights the craftsmanship of early American furniture and musical design, evoking the cozy parlors where families gathered for music-making. Created as part of the Index of American Design (IAD), a New Deal-era Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA), this piece reflects the 1930s effort to celebrate and preserve the nation's folk art and decorative traditions amid the Great Depression. Artists like Bush produced thousands of such precise renderings to document everyday objects, ensuring their cultural legacy for future generations. Housed in the National Gallery of Art, it underscores the IAD's role in fostering national pride through art. Bush's mixed-media technique—vibrant watercolors for rich tones, graphite for subtle shading, and ink for sharp outlines—brings the melodeon's textures and curves to life with museum-quality accuracy. This artwork not only showcases technical skill but also invites visitors to appreciate the harmonious blend of utility, beauty, and American ingenuity in everyday life.

About the Artist

Rex F. Bush · 1915–2002

Rex F. Bush (c. 1915–2002) was an American artist best known for his meticulous contributions to the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project initiative under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression era. Active primarily from 1935 to 1942, Bush produced watercolor, gouache, graphite, and pen-and-ink renderings on paperboard that documented everyday American folk ...