Boy's Suit 1935 - 1942

Nancy Crimi drew this Boy’s Suit sometime in the 20th century with what looks like fine graphite on paper. The wispy lines and attention to detail suggest she relished the process of rendering clothes. It’s like she’s saying that drawing can be a type of sartorial act in itself. Check out how Crimi constructs the tassels hanging from the jacket and trousers. The slight variations in each one keep the work playful; they resemble abstract gestures as much as pieces of clothing. Each mark stands alone, yet contributes to a larger sense of pattern, just as a painting is made up of individual brushstrokes or colors. Crimi seems to be taking inspiration from graphic design, or maybe even technical drawing. I see a bit of Agnes Martin in the way she’s chasing some kind of ethereal, impossible perfection. It’s like she’s asking: can an image capture what words cannot? This piece is about a suit, yes, but it's also about the quiet quest of art-making, and the conversations that visual artists have with one another.