Industrial design schools for women were often considered purveyors of lower forms of art, but Sartain believed that good art was defined more by the artist's capabilities than the medium and that the same aesthetic principles used to judge fine art could be applied to commercial art.
Kunsthåndværkskoler for kvinder blev opfattet som leverandører af mindre lødige former for kunst, men Sartain troede på, at god kunst i højere grad kom an på kunstnerens evner end på mediet, og at man skulle anlægge de samme æstetiske principper ved vurderingen af kunsthåndværk som af kunst.