Pewter Cup

Art Historical Context

Henry Meyers' *Pewter Cup* (c. 1936) is a meticulous graphite drawing on paper, measuring 30.4 x 22.8 cm, that captures the elegant simplicity of an everyday American craft object. Created as part of the Index of American Design—a groundbreaking WPA Federal Art Project—Meyers' work exemplifies the era's commitment to documenting the nation's folk art and decorative traditions amid the Great Depression. The Index, active from 1935 to 1942, employed artists across the U.S. to produce over 15,000 renderings of historical artifacts, preserving cultural heritage through precise, stylized illustrations. Meyers' graphite technique highlights the cup's subtle textures, reflective surfaces, and functional form, blending technical accuracy with artistic interpretation. Pewter, a soft alloy popular in colonial America for tableware, symbolized craftsmanship and domestic life, making this depiction a window into early American material culture. Today, housed in the National Gallery of Art's CG-W Department, *Pewter Cup* invites visitors to appreciate how ordinary objects embody national identity, bridging art, history, and design in a single, evocative sketch.

About the Artist

Henry Meyers · 1855–present

Henry Meyers was an American artist active during the 1930s and early 1940s, best known for his contributions to the Index of American Design, a monumental Works Progress Administration (WPA) project that sought to document the nation's rich heritage of folk art, crafts, and decorative objects. Operating under the Federal Art Project, Meyers produced precise, watercolor and graphite renderings of ...