Woman's Slipper

Art Historical Context

This watercolor and graphite rendering of a slipper was created by Virginia Berge 1941 for the Index of American Design, a landmark federal project now housed at the National Gallery of Art Measuring just over nine by twelve inches on paperboard, the work reflects the precise, documentary style required of the Index, which employed hundreds of artists to record America's decorative arts heritage with exceptional fidelity. The Index of American Design operated from 1935 to 1942 as part of the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project. Artists like Berge produced thousands of detailed illustrations of historical objects—furniture, textiles, ceramics, and clothing—to create a visual archive of American craftsmanship from the colonial era through the nineteenth century. Watercolor captured subtle colors and textures while graphite provided crisp outlines and structural accuracy, resulting in images that remain valuable scholarly resources today. These renderings hold lasting cultural importance because they preserved everyday objects that might otherwise have been lost or overlooked. A woman's slipper, for instance, reveals details of fashion, materials, and making techniques that speak to social history and regional design traditions. Berge's contribution invites viewers to appreciate both the artistry of the original artifact and the skill of the Depression-era illustrators who documented it so carefully.

About the Artist

Virginia Berge · 1855–present

Virginia Berge was an American artist active around 1935 whose surviving body of work consists of meticulously rendered watercolor and graphite illustrations of historic clothing and accessories. Her early life and formal training are not well documented. She is known exclusively through her participation in the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration t...