Andrew Kelly (4)

I spent a couple of weeks working my way through this large art book, which could bear pride of place on your coffee table, or as part of a scholarly collection on the WPA, Kentucky, decorative arts . . .

I was grabbed by the Kentucky aspect. The specific KY design in question is pieces selected by the WPA Index of American Design. To quote the Index's manual, reproduced in an appendix, its aim was "to compile material for a nationwide pictorial survey of design in the American decorative, show more useful and folk arts from their inception to about 1890."

The lucky reader gets several scholarly, interesting articles about the project itself and its Kentucky operation, and about Shaker design (the Kentucky index gathered quite a bit from the two major Shaker settlements in the state). Then about fifty of the chosen objects are presented in their Index-created watercolor renderings, as well as in photograph, which is occasionally of another but similar object, accompanied by a short essay. Finally, in the lengthy appendixes are transcribed oral history interviews from federal archives, and the above-mentioned manual.

The main work was the most interesting to me. These fifty objects tell quite a bit about everyday life in 18th and 19th century Kentucky, especially with the accompanying essays. The photography is beautiful and the reproduced WPA illustrations are impressive. Nobody bothers to make these kin$ of illustrations any more because a photograph seems so much more efficient, but in fact many lovely, interesting details were captured only by the illustrations and not visible even in the really excellent photographs.

My only complaint was that the oral histories took up way too much of the high-quality, heavy paper, where I would have preferred more illustration and discussion of everyday Kentucky objects. show less