Bishop Hill: Cupboard 1936

Wellington Blewett created this technical drawing of a Bishop Hill cupboard using graphite and watercolor on paper. Blewett, born in 1855, was part of the generation that saw the Industrial Revolution transform craft and design. The drawing depicts a cupboard design, possibly intended for mass production. The inclusion of precise measurements and multiple views reflects the growing emphasis on standardization and efficiency during this period. Bishop Hill, the namesake of the cupboard, was a Swedish utopian community founded in Illinois in 1846. The colony aimed for self-sufficiency, emphasizing communal living and labor. Blewett's interest in documenting this piece speaks to a broader cultural interest in preserving the legacy of utopian experiments and vernacular design amidst rapid industrialization. Historians use archival documents, design catalogs, and social histories to understand the cultural values and economic forces that shaped both the Bishop Hill colony and Blewett's documentation of its material culture. This drawing serves as a portal to the past, connecting us to the aspirations and anxieties of a rapidly changing world.