Albert Taxson

Albert Taxson was an artist active during a short but prolific period between 1938 and 1939, during which his output was dedicated to the Index of American Design. This project, initiated by the Federal Art Project during the Great Depression, aimed to create a comprehensive pictorial record of American decorative and folk arts from the colonial period through the 19th century.

Taxson’s contributions focused primarily on documented designs for utilitarian domestic objects. The works currently represented in museum collections include a Flat Iron Holder (documented twice), an Andiron, a Toast Rack, and a Trivet. These renderings serve as historical visual documentation of American craftsmanship and industrial design.

The five known works by Albert Taxson are preserved in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art. These high-quality prints and studies are maintained as historical records of material culture. Today, Taxson's contributions, alongside the broader Index of American Design archive, are widely distributed through institutional partnerships, making Albert Taxson prints a notable component of historically significant public domain visual documentation.