# Preserving Jar

**Wilford H. Shurtliff** (American)  
c. 1938  
watercolor, graphite, colored pencil, and gouache on paper  
overall: 36.2 x 29.1 cm (14 1/4 x 11 7/16 in.) Original IAD Object: 13 1/2" High

Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1943.8.7445. [The museum's record](https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.19643.html).

## About this work

Wilford H. Shurtliff painted this in about 1938. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

### What you’re looking at

The image features a large terracotta pot with two small handles on its sides. The pot is primarily in shades of earthy orange and brown with some lighter patches that suggest a slightly weathered texture. It is positioned centrally against a plain, light background.

_Description from the National Gallery of Art._

### How it was made

- **Opaque watercolour.** Watercolour made opaque with white or chalk and laid in flat, even layers. Persian and Indian painters ground their colours from minerals, applied them with the finest brushes and burnished the finished page.
- **Watercolour.** Pigment in gum arabic, thinned with water and laid in transparent washes. Nothing white is painted: the light is the paper showing through.
- **Graphite.** Pencil. Graphite has been used for drawing since the 1500s; in 1795 Nicolas-Jacques Conté mixed it with clay, so its hardness could be graded.

### [Wilford H. Shurtliff](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/wilford-h-shurtliff)

American

## Facts

- Type: Drawing
- Real size: about 14 × 11 in (36 × 29 cm). The 11 × 14 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 20th century
- Movement: [American folk and design](https://www.ochreeditions.com/movements/american-folk-design)
- Colour: white
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1407.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1407/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86; 24 × 36 in $108
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208; 24 × 36 in $258
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118; 20 × 30 in $148
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5; 24 × 36 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/preserving-jar-nga-19643).