Eldon Allen

Eldon Allen was an artist documented as active between 1935 and 1938, primarily contributing to the Index of American Designs. This federal art project, established under the Works Progress Administration (WPA), aimed to create a detailed visual inventory of decorative and folk arts historically significant to the United States. Allen’s short but intense period of activity aligns directly with the height of the New Deal arts initiatives.

The artist’s work consisted of highly precise documentations, reflecting the Index’s focus on preserving records of tangible American cultural heritage rather than on personal artistic expression. Nine works attributed to Allen are represented in institutional holdings. These include technical studies of functional and decorative objects, specifically Wood Carving and detailed renderings such as Bedspread and multiple drawings labeled Spur.

Allen’s documentation efforts contribute to the visual archive of 20th-century American material culture. The primary institutional home for these records is the National Gallery of Art. Due to their origins in a federal arts initiative, many of these historical documents have entered the public domain, making the precise details captured in Allen’s studies available as downloadable artwork for scholarly and research purposes. These meticulously rendered documents are often sought for their museum-quality historical accuracy.