Two Tin Rattles

Art Historical Context

**Two Tin Rattles** by Raoul Du Bois, created around 1936, captures the charming simplicity of everyday American folk objects in a delicate watercolor, graphite, and gouache on paper (28.5 x 22.1 cm). This work depicts a pair of tin rattles, originally about 5 1/2 inches long—humble toys likely crafted by hand in the tradition of early American craftsmanship. Du Bois, a skilled illustrator, renders their shiny metallic surfaces and playful forms with meticulous detail, evoking the tactile joy of childhood playthings from a bygone era. As part of the *Index of American Design* (IAD), a groundbreaking WPA Federal Art Project from the Great Depression, this piece served a vital cultural mission. Launched in 1935, the IAD commissioned over 15,000 watercolor studies by artists like Du Bois to document and celebrate America's folk art, decorative objects, and vernacular designs. By preserving these artifacts on paper amid economic hardship, the project highlighted the nation's creative heritage and fostered national pride. The mixed-media technique—watercolor for luminous color, graphite for precise lines, and gouache for opaque highlights—lends a lifelike vibrancy, bridging fine art and documentary illustration. Housed in the National Gallery of Art, *Two Tin Rattles* invites visitors to appreciate how ordinary items embody American ingenuity and whimsy.