Waistcoat

Art Historical Context

This delicate watercolor and graphite rendering of a waistcoat, created around 1937 by Sara Garfinkel, belongs to the Index of American Design, a remarkable New Deal initiative. During the Great Depression, artists across the country produced thousands of precise illustrations documenting everyday objects, furniture, and textiles from America’s past. These works served both as a form of employment for artists and as a visual archive preserving the nation’s decorative arts heritage at a time when many historic items faced loss or deterioration. Garfinkel’s choice of watercolor over graphite al...