A priority of New Mexico’s Federal Art Project was the revitalization of “traditional” art forms, with an emphasis on pre-industrial Spanish Colonial craftsmanship. This 1930s chair is a replica of an 18th-century pattern, likely produced by Elidio Gonzales at the Taos Vocational School, which was used as a New Deal decorative arts workshop. Despite the New Deal’s narrative of tradition, it is, in its own way and for its own time, quite modern. While it does not lack detail and decoration, the lines of this chair are clean, straight, and elegant. Take the back and bottom splats, for instance. These appear to be simplified—almost geometric or abstract—versions of typically elaborate and intricate carved floral motifs.
This chair and three identical counterparts were probably made to furnish the historic McKinley County Courthouse, built in 1938 and itself a New Deal building.
