Wooden Straight Chair
c. 1938
Medium
watercolor, colored pencil, gouache, and graphite on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 56 x 45.7 cm (22 1/16 x 18 in.) Original IAD Object: 32 1/4"high; 15 1/2" wide. See data sheet for dets.
Classification
Index of American Design
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Index of American Design
Accession Number
1943.8.4436
Art Historical Context
Behold the *Wooden Straight Chair*, a meticulously rendered depiction by artist Wilbur M. Rice around 1938. This vibrant watercolor, colored pencil, gouache, and graphite drawing on paperboard captures the simple elegance of a classic American ladder-back chair, measuring about 32¼ inches high and 15½ inches wide in its original form. Rice's work invites us to appreciate the unadorned beauty of everyday wooden furniture, evoking the sturdy craftsmanship of early American homes. Created as part of the Index of American Design (IAD), a landmark WPA Federal Art Project from 1935 to 1942, this pi...
About the Artist
Wilbur M Rice
**Wilbur M. Rice (1909–1974)** was an American artist best known for his meticulous contributions to the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression. Active primarily between 1935 and 1942, Rice produced detailed watercolor, gouache, and graphite renderings of everyday American folk objects, tools, toys, and crafts. Thes...