Pitcher

Art Historical Context

This delicate rendering of a pitcher, created by Edward Unger around 1938, belongs to the Index of American Design, a pioneering Works Progress Administration project that employed hundreds of artists to document historic American decorative arts. Executed in a meticulous combination of watercolor, graphite, colored pencil, and gouache on paperboard, the work measures just 14 by 9⅝ inches, capturing the object’s form, texture, and subtle color variations with remarkable precision. Such hybrid techniques allowed artists to achieve both photographic accuracy and artistic sensitivity, preserving visual records of everyday objects that might otherwise have been lost. Unger’s contribution reflects the broader mission of the Index: to celebrate America’s craft heritage during the Great Depression while providing employment for skilled illustrators. The resulting archive, now housed at the National Gallery of Art, serves as an invaluable resource for historians and designers. Though the original pitcher’s maker and date remain unidentified, Unger’s careful study transforms a utilitarian vessel into a quiet testament to American material culture and the enduring value of handcrafted documentation.