Rosalia Lane

Rosalia Lane was an artist or designer whose documented activity period spanned 1935 to 1936. Her output is directly associated with the Index of American Design (IAD), a division of the Federal Art Project established during the American Great Depression to create a comprehensive pictorial survey of early American decorative and folk arts.

Lane contributed fifteen documented items to the Index of American Design. As was common for Index artists, her specialization focused on the detailed rendering of historical decorative objects and textiles. The works cataloged by Lane focused specifically on apparel designs, including studies titled Baby Cap, Bonnet, and Cap. These detailed renderings serve as museum-quality records of historic American textile patterns and craftsmanship.

Rosalia Lane’s documented work, created under federal commission, is represented in the major collections of the National Gallery of Art. Because her works are often designated as part of the public domain, high-quality prints and downloadable artwork of her designs are widely available for research and study today.