Pearl Gibbo

Pearl Gibbo was a designer active during a concentrated four-year period from 1938 to 1942. Their work is fundamentally linked to the Index of American Designs, a crucial Federal Art Project initiative responsible for documenting historical American folk and decorative arts during the late 1930s and early 1940s.

Gibbo’s documented output focuses specifically on textile and decorative design. The types of works represented in museum holdings include Printed Textile, Tapestry, Cotton Cloth, and Printed Cotton. Records indicate that 14 works associated with Pearl Gibbo are preserved in these design indexes, demonstrating engagement with functional decorative arts rather than purely pictorial works. One specifically documented piece is the pattern study Printed Cotton (Winter Sports).

The significance of these design documents is established by their inclusion in major institutional holdings. Examples of Pearl Gibbo prints and studies are preserved in the permanent collections of the National Gallery of Art. Due to the nature of their creation under government programs, many of these historical design records are now available in the public domain. This accessibility allows researchers and enthusiasts to obtain high-quality prints of the documented patterns for study and reference.