Fanchon Larzelere

Fanchon Larzelere was an American artist active in the documentation of historical material culture during the mid-1930s, specifically spanning the period 1935 to 1937. Larzelere contributed to the Index of American Design (IAD), a Works Progress Administration initiative focused on creating a visual archive of American decorative arts.

Larzelere specialized in detailed renderings of antique costumes and textiles, producing technical documentation central to the IAD’s archival goals. Fifteen of the artist’s documented works are represented in museum collections, including focused studies such as Brocade Dress, Dutch Dress, Border or Valance, Calash, and Crewel Embroidery.

The documentation produced by Fanchon Larzelere is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., preserving the detailed records of American design history. Due to their origin within a government project, many of these historical IAD works exist in the public domain, making high-quality prints and the original Fanchon Larzelere prints available as downloadable artwork for scholarly research and exhibition.