Tailor's Stove
c. 1939
Medium
watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil on paper
Dimensions
overall: 46.2 x 35.7 cm (18 3/16 x 14 1/16 in.)
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.14947
Art Historical Context
**Tailor's Stove**, a captivating watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil by John Bodine from around 1939, beautifully captures an everyday artifact of American craftsmanship. Created as part of the *Index of American Design*a ambitious WPA project during the Great Depression—this work documents the humble yet ingenious tailor's stove, a portable heating device essential for ironing and pressing fabrics in early 20th-century workshops. Measuring 46.2 x 35.7 cm, it exemplifies the Index's mission to preserve vanishing folk art and design traditions through meticulous artist renderings. Bodine...