American Model: Origins of the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project
Words on Pictures: Romana and the New York Public Library’s Picture Collection . edited by Anthony T. Troncale. New York: Photo | Verso Publications, LLC , 2020. ISBN 978-1-7346409-0-8 (hardcover) Identifiers ISBN 978-1-7346409-1-5 (ebook) American Model: Origins of the Index of American Design, a Federal Art Project American 20th Century Teapot, 1935/1942 watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil on paper overall: 20 x 25.4 cm (7 7/8 x 10 in.) Index of American Design 1943.8.16986 IAD-20140728-0019.jpg One of the more successful projects emanating from the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project was one of its first: The Index of American Design. Its origins came from users of the Picture Collection like Ruth Reeves, the textile designer who was working on a major commission to design the rugs and tapestries for the new Radio City Music Hall in 1932. Reeves would often discuss the lack of documentation in American design with the superviso