Design from Proposed Portfolio 1935 - 1942

This vibrant design from a proposed portfolio was created by an anonymous artist, using watercolor and graphite. Its symmetrical composition, with stylized floral motifs in bold blue, yellow, and red, hints at its intended purpose. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, design portfolios were often presented to institutions such as art schools, craft guilds, or even manufacturers to demonstrate an artist's skills and secure commissions. This image, with its focus on pattern and color, may have been aimed at textile or wallpaper design. We can understand these portfolios as a microcosm of the cultural values of the time. They demonstrate the increasing emphasis on professional artistic training, and reveal the connection between the art world and commercial production. By studying these designs and the institutions that fostered them, we can gain a deeper understanding of the social conditions that shaped artistic production. Through archival research, one might discover the specific requirements of design schools, the tastes of manufacturers, and the evolving role of the artist in a rapidly industrializing world.