Woman's Shoe

Art Historical Context

Step into the elegant world of American design with *Woman's Shoe*, a captivating watercolor and graphite rendering by artist Daniel Marshack, created 1940. Measuring 28.8 x 37.3 cm, this delicate work on paperboard showcases the refined curves and textures of a woman's shoe, rendered with meticulous precision. Marshack's use of watercolor brings vibrant hues and subtle shading to life, while graphite lines add sharp details, highlighting the shoe's form and ornamentation. This artwork is a gem from the *Index of American Design*, a groundbreaking WPA Federal Art Project (1935–1942) that employed artists during the Great Depression to document everyday American objects—from folk art to crafts—as symbols of national heritage. By faithfully reproducing designs like this shoe, the Index preserved cultural artifacts that might otherwise fade from memory, celebrating the ingenuity of American craftsmanship amid economic hardship. Marshack's piece exemplifies the project's artistic technique: realistic yet artistic interpretations that blend technical accuracy with aesthetic appeal. Displayed in the National Gallery of Art's CG-W department, it invites us to appreciate how ordinary items like footwear reflect broader stories of style, function, and identity in American life. A timeless tribute to design's enduring charm!

About the Artist

Daniel Marshack · 1911–1995

Daniel Marshack was an American artist born around 1911 whose death date remains unknown. Little is recorded about his early life, training, or teachers, as is common for many of the hundreds of artists employed on New Deal-era public art projects. He is known today almost exclusively through his contributions to the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administrat...