In all likelihood, this bench was made at a 1930s State of New Mexico vocational school. During the New Deal, the state’s vocational schools and the Federal Art Project teamed up to manufacture furniture and decorative arts for newly constructed public buildings such as the 1938 McKinley County Courthouse, where this bench and an identical copy are housed. Schools operated according to a workshop model: students/artists were supplied with instructional bulletins, or production manuals, and worked individually and/or collaboratively to create pieces. Although designs were regulated, students/artists found ways to express original artistry. Unfortunately, the New Deal did not credit these students/artists—most of whom were Hispano—for their work.
