Upcoming Exhibition

In the Library: Reimagining America by Design

Details

  • Dates

    -

  • Locations

    East Building

    East Building Ground Level, Library Atrium

  • Ticketing Information

    Open weekdays, 11:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m., except federal holidays

See the Great Depression-era Index of American Design through the eyes of today’s college students. 

In spring 2026, the National Gallery of Art hosted students from George Washington University’s Corcoran School for the Arts & Design for an entire semester dedicated to the Index of American Design. Students explored our collections, archives, and library resources and designed exhibitions of their own.

From August 31 through October 30, get a look behind the curtain at the inner workings of the course. “Research & Process” presents Corcoran students’ assignments and the discoveries they made working with the Index of American Design.

Come back between November 2 and December 31 to explore a selection of the objects from the Index of American Design that were made for children. “Work & Play” combines student works with materials from National Gallery collections related to toys, games, dolls and figurines.   

Organization

Organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Curated by Jet Inglis, Gabi Maldonado, Gigi Pilla, Abby Turner, Sophia Wegmann-Gatarz, and Polyxeni Ziazia in collaboration with Kara Braciale, professorial lecturer at the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design at George Washington University and Matthew Westerby, digital research officer for the Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts at the National Gallery of Art. 

Stories 

The image depicts a gray shoe with a buckle and a red sole. The shoe is placed centrally, tilted slightly upwards and towards the right, on a light background.

Index of American Design

The Index is made up of 18,257 watercolor works by some 1,000 artists. A Federal Art Project dating to the Great Depression, it sought to identify and preserve a national, ancestral aesthetic for the United States. The watercolors depict American folk and decorative arts objects from the colonial period through 1900.

A black and white drawing of a Sony Walkman with wired headphones

Article:  Create with Us: How Drawing Can Teach You to See Your Belongings in a New Light

Sketch everyday objects, inspired by the Index of American Design.

Article:  Creating an Index of American Design

The US government once employed artists to draw pictures of designs from historical objects. The idea is reimagined by artists today.

This painting depicts an angel in flight, facing the left and playing a trumpet. The angel's wings are spread out behind them, and their feet are extended out horizontally to the right. A small rod or post extends downward from the torso of the angel. The angel is entirely painted in shades of yellow, reddish-brown, and gray, reminiscent of weathered metal with patches of rust. Small rivets are visible at joints and edges of the angel, which appears to be comprised of small panels. The background of the painting is plain beige paper.

Article:  Seven Highlights from the Index of American Design

Peer into the American past with a collection of Great Depression–era watercolors.

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