Design for a water pitcher 1830 - 1840

This is Thomas Fletcher’s design for a water pitcher, drawn with graphite on paper, although we don’t know exactly when. The pitcher’s neoclassical design evokes the visual culture of the early American Republic, calling upon the imagery of ancient Greece and Rome to create a sense of stability and democracy. Fletcher was a silversmith, part of a growing class of artisans and entrepreneurs who sought to create a uniquely American aesthetic. Pieces like this were luxury objects, purchased by wealthy merchants and landowners, with wealth often derived from the exploitation of enslaved peoples. Designs were often circulated through pattern books and trade publications, but the social meaning of luxury objects remains ambiguous. Were they meant to reinforce social hierarchy, or did they signal a new, more democratic social order? To better understand this drawing and its place in American visual culture, scholars can consult design archives, trade publications, and historical records. The meaning of art, after all, is contingent on its social and institutional context.