Hazel Sheckler

Hazel Sheckler was an artist active during the mid-to-late 1930s, with documented professional activity spanning the period from 1935 to 1940. Sheckler is associated with the Index of American Design (IAD), a Depression-era Federal Art Project dedicated to compiling a comprehensive visual survey of historical American decorative and folk arts. This work involved creating highly accurate, detailed renderings of objects, rather than traditional studio work or Hazel Sheckler paintings.

Her output focused on meticulous documentation, capturing the design and craftsmanship of various artifacts. Seven of her index of American designs are preserved in major institutional holdings. Examples of the works she documented include textile patterns, such as Handwoven Coverlet and Coverlet, as well as items of functional design like the repeated renderings of Spur and the pattern for Cotton Bag.

These documentation records function as important reference material, often available today as museum-quality reproductions. Due to the nature of their creation under a government-sponsored project, the artworks often reside in the public domain, making them valuable resources for scholars and historians seeking free art prints. All seven designs attributed to Hazel Sheckler are currently held within the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.