Orville A. Carroll

Orville A. Carroll was an artist active between 1935 and 1939, associated with the documentation efforts of the Index of American Design (IAD). The IAD, established during the mid-1930s, employed artists to create meticulous visual records of historical American decorative arts and material culture. Carroll’s output reflects this focus on documenting utilitarian and historical artifacts.

Seven of Carroll’s documented designs are represented in museum collections, confirming the artist's contributions to this significant federal arts project. These works are primarily highly detailed drawings and renderings of functional objects. Specific examples preserved include the design for a Bonnet, a Glass Bottle, and an Invalid's Chair, alongside representations of period furniture, such as Shaker Table and Fragments of Shaker Chair Braid.

Orville A. Carroll’s surviving work is held in the collections of the National Gallery of Art. The historic documentation Carroll produced, suitable for high-quality prints and academic research, is often found in the public domain. Today, Orville A. Carroll prints contribute to the visual record of 20th-century studies of American material culture and are frequently available as downloadable artwork.