Setting (interior)
1935/1942
Medium
watercolor, gouache, pen and ink, and graphite on paper
Dimensions
sheet: 47 × 58.7 cm (18 1/2 × 23 1/8 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.7651
Art Historical Context
**Setting (interior)** by Perkins Harnly, between 1935 and1942, is a mixed-media rendering on paper measuring 47 × 58.7 cm. Harnly employed watercolor, gouache, and ink, and graphite meticulously capture an American interior scene, showcasing his skill in blending fine lines with vibrant washes for lifelike detail and depth. As part of the National Gallery Art's collection, this work exemplifies the precision of 20th-century American draftsmanship. Produced under the Index of American Design—a Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression—this piec...
About the Artist
Perkins Harnly · 1901–1986
Perkins Harnly was born on October 14, 1901, on a cattle ranch in the rugged plains of Ogallala, Nebraska—the same year Queen Victoria died, an irony that foreshadowed his lifelong obsession with Victorian opulence. Leaving behind the stark Midwest, he ventured to Los Angeles in 1922, spending six years there before settling in New York City in 1928. There, Harnly studied at the School of Interior...